Sergey Chechulin and his wife Yelena

Sergey Chechulin and his wife Yelena

Sergey Chechulin and his wife Yelena

Criminal trial

To be reconsidered — Court of Cassation Overturns Verdict for Faith of Chechulin Spouses from Petropavlovsk-Kamchatsky

Kamchatka Territory

On October 30, 2024, the Ninth Court of Cassation of General Jurisdiction took the side of the prosecutor with regard to the verdict against Sergey and Yelena Chechulin and sent the case for a new trial in the first instance.

Yevgeniy Paul, Deputy Prosecutor of the Kamchatka Territory, considered that the court inappropriately mitigated the charge, reclassifying it from organizing the activities of an extremist organization (part 1 of article 282.2 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation) to participation in it (part 2 of article 282.2 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation).

The Chechulins do not agree with the guilty verdict and consider themselves innocent. Sergey, referring to the article of the Constitution of the Russian Federation on freedom of conscience, stated: "In fact, my wife and I were found guilty of professing the religion of Jehovah's Witnesses."

The Case of the Chechulins in Petropavlovsk-Kamchatskiy

Case History
Sergey Chechulin and his wife Yelena became defendants in yet another criminal case against Jehovah’s Witnesses in Petropavlovsk-Kamchatskiy. In September 2022, the Investigative Committee initiated a case against them on suspicion of organizing the activity of an extremist organization. A month later, their home was searched, and the couple was placed under a recognizance agreement. In November 2023, the case went to court, where the charge was reclassified as participating in the activity of an extremist organization. The prosecutor requested 6 years in a penal colony for the Chechulins. In April 2024, they were each given a 2-year suspended sentence, a 3-year probation period and additional restrictions of 6 months. The court of appeal upheld this decision, yet in October 2024, cassation sent the case for retrial.
Timeline

Persons in case

Criminal case

Region:
Kamchatka Territory
Locality:
Petropavlovsk-Kamchatsky
Suspected of:
in "convening meetings, organizing collective religious speeches and services, in accordance with the ideology of the religious association of Jehovah's Witnesses at these meetings ... Conducted routine training with other persons on the postulates of the religious association "Jehovah's Witnesses"" (from the decision to initiate a criminal case)
Court case number:
12202300011000019
Initiated:
September 25, 2022
Current case stage:
trial in court of first instance
Investigating:
Investigative Directorate of the Investigative Committee of the Russian Federation for the Kamchatka Territory
Articles of Criminal Code of Russian Federation:
282.2 (2)
Court case number:
1-70/2024 (1-997/2023)
Court of First Instance:
Петропавловск-Камчатский городской суд
Judge of the Court of First Instance:
Иван Пантяшин
Case History
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