Gerasimov Aleksey

Updated: April 26, 2024
Name: Gerasimov Aleksey Anatoliyevich
Date of Birth: December 17, 1980
Current status: convicted person
Articles of Criminal Code of Russian Federation: 282.2 (1)
Time spent in prison: 106 day in a pre-trial detention, 35 day in prison
Current restrictions: Detention center
Sentence: punishment in the form of 6 years of imprisonment with serving a sentence in a correctional colony of general regime with deprivation of the right to engage in activities related to leadership and participation in the work of public and religious organizations and associations for a term of 5 years with restriction of liberty for a term of 1 year
Currently held in: Pre-trial detention center No. 2 in the Republic of Tatarstan
Address for correspondence: Gerasimov Aleksey Anatolyevich, born in 1980, pre-trial detention center No. 2 in the Republic of Tatarstan, 98 Bolshaya St., Kazan, Republic of Tatarstan, 420030

Letters of support can be sent by regular mail or through the «zonatelecom».

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

Biography

The quiet life of the driver from Kazan, Alexei Gerasimov, was violated by a search of his home. So the man found out that he was a defendant in a criminal case on extremism because of his religious beliefs.

Alexey was born in December 1980 in the city of Ust-Kut, Irkutsk Region. He has an older sister. His father has already died, and his elderly mother lives with Alexey's family.

As a child, Alexey was fond of swimming and playing the guitar.

After school, he trained as a navigation technician, and also received an incomplete higher education as a hydraulic engineer. For some time he worked as a navigator on the Lena River.

Alexei met his wife, Natalia, as a child - they lived in the same yard. In February 2007, they got married, and in December of the same year, they were baptized together as a Christian. Aleksey recalls that he was prompted to devote his life to serving God by studying the Bible and reflecting on how the world around him was thoughtfully and lovingly created.

For some time the family lived in Ust-Kut, then in Skovorodino (Amur Region) and Yakutsk, and later moved to Kazan. The spouses work together as personal drivers. Alexei also moonlights as a janitor. She and Natalia love to read, visit theaters, museums and exhibitions. Natalia is also interested in psychology, as well as the structure and functioning of the brain.

"At first, because of the criminal prosecution, everyone in the family experienced stress," the Gerasimovs said, "but they quickly recovered and recharged with a positive attitude."

Case History

Aleksey Gerasimov became another victim of religious persecution in Kazan. In March 2022, searches were conducted in the homes of Jehovah’s Witnesses. Several of them, including Gerasimov, were interrogated. According to investigators, Aleksey continued to meet with fellow believers to discuss the Holy Scriptures, which the authorities considered to be undermining the foundations of the constitutional order of Russia. In this regard, law enforcement officers opened a criminal case against the believer, accusing him of organizing the activities of an extremist organization. In January 2023, the case was transferred to the Kirovsky District Court of Kazan, and in December 2023, the believer was sentenced to 6 years in prison. In March 2024, the appeal upheld this decision.
Timeline