In Biysk, One of Jehovah's Witnesses Given Suspended Sentence for His Faith

On December 11, 2024, the Biysk City Court gave Sergey Lukin a 4.5-year suspended sentence. The believer does not admit guilt and, as a Christian, considers it his birthright to talk to friends and other people about the Bible. "What's extremist about wanting to follow Jesus' example?" he told the court.

The Investigative Committee opened a criminal case against Lukin in December 2022. The following month, four families of Jehovah's Witnesses from Biysk were searched at once, Sergey's apartment and workplace were among places searched. The law enforcement officers who took part in the investigation were armed. After the interrogation, Lukin was given a recognizance agreement.

The criminal case involved a man who pretended to be interested in the Bible: he secretly recorded conversations with Lukin on biblical topics and later handed over the recordings to law enforcement agencies. The investigation considered these conversations to be involvement in the activities of an extremist organization, and participation in peaceful worship services as a continuation of its activities.

In his final plea, Lukin drew an analogy between his situation and the repressions of World War II. He quoted a report on a group of Jehovah's Witnesses in Nazi Germany: "... the accused, who for several years have called themselves "Jehovah's Witnesses," held meetings in their apartments, read and distributed printed materials of the banned [organization] ... gathered together to listen to the Bible Students' radio broadcasts from abroad." The believer noted that the accusations are identical to modern ones. "Hasn't history shown that such persecution is a path to terrible consequences?" he said.

Nine Jehovah's Witnesses have already been accused of extremism in the Altai Territory, two of them are serving sentences in penal colonies for their faith.