Aleksey Dyadkin

Name: Dyadkin Aleksey Valeriyevich

Date of Birth: May 6, 1989

Current status: convicted person

Articles of Criminal Code of Russian Federation: 282.2 (1)

Time spent in prison: 881 day in a pre-trial detention, 701 day in prison

Sentence: punishment in the form of 7 years of imprisonment with serving in a correctional colony of general regime, with deprivation of the right to engage in organizational activities in public and religious associations and organizations, for a period of 5 years, with restriction of liberty for a period of 1 year

Currently held in: Correctional Colony No. 2 of the Lipetsk Region

Address for correspondence: Dyadkin Aleksey Valeriyevich, born 1989, Correctional Colony No. 2 of the Lipetsk Region, ul. Kovaleva, vladenie 130B, Lipetsk, Lipetsk Region, 398007

Letters of support can be sent by regular mail or through the «FSIN-letter system». To pay for service with the card of a foreign bank use Prisonmail.

Parcels and parcels should not be sent because of the limit on their number per year.

Note: discussing topics related to criminal prosecution is not allowed in letters; languages other than Russian will not pass.

Biography

In August 2020, searches were conducted at the homes of Jehovah's Witnesses. Soon Alexei Dyadkin, who came to the investigator for questioning, was detained and placed in a pre-trial detention center. In September 2022, the court sentenced him to 7 years in a penal colony just because of his faith.

Aleksey was born in Chkalovsk (Tajikistan) in May 1989 in the family of a technologist and a hairdresser. He has 2 elder sisters. Since childhood, Aleksey loved sports: football, figure skating, weightlifting. After school, he graduated with a degree in welding engineering. For some time, Aleksey worked by profession, and also mastered the skills of a builder, plumber and tiler.

Aleksey was introduced to Bible teachings by his grandmother. As he studied the Scriptures and applied what he learned, he realized that his life was changing for the better. Guided by a conscience brought up according to the Bible, he asked for the replacement of military service with an alternative civilian one, which he completed in the regional hospital of Kursk.

In 2011, Aleksey married Vitalina, whom he met in a circle of mutual friends. Vitalina is a pastry chef by profession, works as a hairdresser, and for some time was fond of painting. The couple traveled a lot, lived in Zadonsk, Saratov and Gukovo. The family returned to Kursk to support Aleksey's parents.

After the arrest of Aleksey, the life of the family changed dramatically. The husband was placed in a pre-trial detention center in Rostov-on-Don, because of that Vitalina had to move there, look for housing and work. Experiences affected health, exacerbated chronic diseases.

Father, mother and sisters of Aleksey do not recognize him as guilty and do not understand why their loved one was thrown into prison.

Case History

In August 2020 the security forces conducted searches in the homes of residents of Gukovo. The Investigative Committee initiated a criminal case against Aleksey Dyadkin, Vladimir Popov, Yevgeniy Razumov, Aleksey Goreliy, Nikita Moiseyev and Oleg Shidlovskiy. These peaceful believers were accused of organizing the activities of an extremist organization. The men’s crime, according to the investigators, is that they “prayed and sang songs to Jehovah God.” Since August 2020 all six have been in pre-trial. As it later became known, an infiltrated FSB agent had been watching the believers for a long time. In November of 2021 the case went to trial. The testimonies of interviewed religious scholars confirmed that these men were tried only for their peaceful religious activities. In September 2022 the court sentenced Goreliy and Shidlovskiy to six-and-a-half years in a general penal colony, while the rest of the believers were sentenced to seven years. In January of 2023 the appeal court approved the verdict, and then six months later the cassational court upheld it.

Timeline