Updated: May 3, 2024
Name: Spirichev Viktor Nikolayevich
Date of Birth: March 6, 1980
Current status: Defendant
Articles of Criminal Code of Russian Federation: 282.2 (2)
Current restrictions: Recognizance agreement

Biography

In May 2023, a year after the mass searches in the Kuban that affected at least 51 people, law enforcement officers initiated a criminal case against Viktor Spirichev simply because of his faith.

Viktor was born in 1980 in the village of Samoded (Arkhangelsk Region) in a family of railway workers. He has a younger half-sister. His elder brother died.

As a child, Viktor was fond of drawing and graduated from a children's art school. Together with his father and brother, he often went hunting and fishing in the forest. In his spare time he liked to read. In 1991, together with his parents, he moved to live in the Kuban in the village of Vyselki.

After school, Viktor graduated from the courses of railway foremen, worked as a fitter on the railway, as a sales assistant, and then became an individual entrepreneur. Recently, he has been self-employed in the field of construction and repair. As a hobby, he grows vegetables.

From 1998 to 2000, Viktor served in the military. After the army, he began to study the Bible, as he wanted to do the right thing and avoid mistakes in life. Viktor came to the conclusion that this is possible through obedience to God, so in 2022 he decided to dedicate his life to him and become a Christian.

In 2009, Viktor married Larisa. She is a nurse, but has not worked lately because she is a disabled person of the disability group two.

Having been prosecuted, Viktor experienced stress, and his family does not understand why their loved one had to face this.

Case History

In May 2023, the Investigative Committee for the Krasnodar Territory initiated a criminal case against Viktor Spirichev, a believer from the village of Vyselki. The year before, massive searches took place in the region, affecting at least 51 people. Victor was accused of participating in organizing the activities of an extremist organization, and his accounts were blocked. After interrogation, the believer was released under a recognizance agreement. In December 2023, the case went to the district court.