Announcement: appeal in the case of Arkadi Hakobyan in Kabardino-Balkaria

The Supreme Court of the Kabardino-Balkarian Republic has scheduled for March 1, 2019 the consideration of appeals against the sentence handed down to a 70-year-old Jehovah's Witness from Prokhladny. On December 27, 2018, the district court found Arkadya Hakobyan guilty under Part 1 of Article 282 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation and sentenced him to 120 hours of compulsory labor.

Three appeals were filed from Arkadi Hakobyan himself, as well as from his lawyers, asking for the cancellation of the verdict and full acquittal. There is no real evidence of Hakobyan's guilt in the case, so the verdict was appealed. In the past, all attempts to charge individual Jehovah's Witnesses under Article 282 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation were unsuccessful.

In addition, a request was submitted by the prosecutor with a request to cancel the sentence and terminate the proceedings in connection with the decriminalization of the criminal article.

The appeal hearing in the Supreme Court of the Kabardino-Balkarian Republic will be held on March 1, 2019 at the address: Nalchik, st. Pacheva, 12.