Aleksandr Sobyanin, Vladimir Timoshkin, Vladimir Poltoradnev

Aleksandr Sobyanin, Vladimir Timoshkin, Vladimir Poltoradnev

Aleksandr Sobyanin, Vladimir Timoshkin, Vladimir Poltoradnev

Unjust Verdicts

Court in the City of Solikamsk Fines Three Jehovah's Witnesses for Talking about the Bible

Perm Territory

On August 18, 2023, the Judge of the Solikamsk City Court of the Perm Territory, Evgeny Sergeev, fined 50-year-old Aleksandr Sobyanin 494 thousand rubles, 61-year-old Vladimir Poltoradnev - 638 thousand rubles and 54-year-old Vladimir Timoshkin - 512 thousand rubles, finding them guilty of extremism for participation in peaceful worship.

The believers did not admit their guilt, they repeatedly drew the attention of the court to the fact that their activities were legal. “All my actions were exclusively peaceful and did not harm anyone,” said Vladimir Poltoradnev. A similar thought was expressed by Vladimir Timoshkin: "For me, because of the beliefs I practice, it is unacceptable for me to propagate any extremist ideas or incite enmity and hatred."

The criminal case was initiated by the investigative department for Solikamsk of the Investigative Committee of the Investigative Committee of the Russian Federation for the Perm Territory in July 2020. Investigator Sergei Kanafiev accused the believers of organizing an extremist organization, pointing out that they "participated in religious meetings ... discussed issues and topics of a religious nature with followers." In Solikamsk, searches were carried out in several homes of local Jehovah's Witnesses. Aleksandr Sobyanin, Vladimir Timoshkin and Vladimir Poltoradnev were sent to the temporary detention center by the security forces. Later, Sobyanin's preventive measure was replaced by a ban on certain actions. Poltoradnev and Timoshkin spent two and three months under house arrest, respectively. Subsequently, they were also prohibited from certain activities.

The investigation lasted more than two and a half years, and in April 2023 the case went to court. During the hearings, violations on the part of the investigation were revealed. For example, as Sobyanin and Timoshkin stated, the prosecution presented as evidence of the believers' guilt audio recordings of wiretapping, in which their voices are not heard. Vladimir Poltoradnev said that he did not own the allegedly confiscated literature.

Witnesses interrogated in court gave positive characteristics to the defendants. The former boss of Poltoradnev spoke of him like this: “An excellent worker! I have no complaints about him!" The believers were also positively described by their colleagues and neighbors.

The prosecutor requested 6 years in prison for Vladimir Timoshkin and Vladimir Poltoradnev, and asked Aleksandr Sobyanin to replace Part 1 (organization of extremist activity) with Part 2 (participation) of Article 282.2 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation and sentence him to  three years in prison. The verdict has not yet entered into force.

In the Perm Territory , eleven believers have already been prosecuted, five of them received suspended sentences, and five more received fines.

The UN Human Rights Council expresses concern about the persecution of Jehovah's Witnesses in Russia and draws attention to the fact that "the actions of the state [to liquidate legal entities of believers] were motivated by a discriminatory goal: to stop the religious practice of Jehovah's Witnesses in Russia."

The case of Poltoradnev and Others in Solikamsk

Case History
In July 2020, the Investigative Directorate of the Investigative Committee for the Perm Territory opened a criminal case against Vladimir Poltoradnev, Alexander Sobyanin and Vladimir Timoshkin from Solikamsk. By that time, law enforcement officers had been spying on them for a long time. After searches and interrogations, three believers ended up in a temporary detention facility. Then Sobyanin was released under a ban on certain actions, and Poltoradnev and Timoshkin were placed under house arrest for 2 and 3 months, respectively. Later, the measure of restraint of the latter was also changed to a ban on certain actions. After the investigation was repeatedly suspended and resumed, the case went to court in April 2023. Already in August, the judge found the believers guilty and fined: Alexander Sobyanin for 494 thousand rubles, Vladimir Poltoradnev for 638 thousand rubles and Vladimir Timoshkin for 512 thousand rubles. An appeal in November 2023 upheld the main part of the sentence, slightly mitigating the additional punishment.
Timeline

Persons in case

Criminal case

Region:
Perm Territory
Locality:
Solikamsk
Suspected of:
"directly participated in religious meetings ... discussed with his followers issues and topics of a religious nature" (from the decision to prosecute as an accused)
Court case number:
12002570024000055
Initiated:
July 27, 2020
Current case stage:
the verdict entered into force
Investigating:
Solikamsk Investigative Directorate of the Investigative Committee of the Russian Federation for the Perm Territory
Articles of Criminal Code of Russian Federation:
282.2 (1)
Court case number:
1-180/2023
Court of First Instance:
Соликамский городской суд Пермского края
Judge of the Court of First Instance:
Евгений Сергеев
Case History