New criminal cases in Krasnoyarsk. A man and a woman can go to jail for talking about faith on the street

On October 2, 2019, two criminal cases were initiated against civilians in Krasnoyarsk. According to investigators, Sergey Tolstonozhenko and Tatyana Feruleva carried out "illegal activities of Jehovah's Witnesses." This is how law enforcement officers interpreted a simple conversation at a bus stop.

Both cases were initiated by the senior investigator, Major of Justice R. I. Kurbanov under Part 1.1 of Article 282.2 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation. The decision to initiate a criminal case notes that both persons "committed actions of an organizational nature aimed at continuing the illegal activities of Jehovah's Witnesses," which was expressed in "involving new members" and "distributing extremist literature and software among the participants of the organization."

During the interrogation, Tatyana Feruleva was offered to conclude a so-called deal with justice - to admit her guilt in the "crime" and expose its other "participants".

Currently, investigations are underway in the Krasnoyarsk Territory against five believers. Anton Ostapenko is still in custody in pre-trial detention center No. 3 in the city of Achinsk. Andrey Stupnikov's case has been going on since July 3, 2018.

Jehovah's Witnesses have nothing to do with extremism. Article 28 of the Constitution of the Russian Federation allows "to freely choose, have and disseminate religious and other beliefs and act in accordance with them." Persecuting law-abiding believers for talking about religion is a terrible mistake of law enforcement agencies that distracts them from the fight against real crime.