Six Jehovah’s Witnesses Sentenced in Russia After FSB Informant Sting Operation
Convictions and Sentences of Jehovah’s Witnesses in Russia
By Mark Trevelyan
Details of the Case and Sentencing
LONDON, Sept 1 (Reuters) - Six Jehovah's Witnesses have been convicted of "extremist" activity in Russia after being entrapped by an informant of the FSB security service who posed as a bereaved woman seeking comfort in religion, a spokesperson for the faith group said on Tuesday.
Sentences Handed Down
Two of the accused, Zaur Murtuzov and Darya Petrochenko, were sentenced last week to five years each in a penal colony. Four other women received compulsory labour sentences of up to four years.
Background on Jehovah’s Witnesses and Legal Status in Russia
The Jehovah's Witnesses are a Christian movement known for door-to-door evangelism and a literal approach to studying the Bible. Russia banned them in 2017 as an "extremist organisation".
International Response
The European Court of Human Rights ruled in 2022 that the ban was unlawful. It has been similarly condemned by the U.N. Human Rights Committee.
How the FSB Informant Operation Unfolded
Jarrod Lopes, a New York-based spokesperson, said the latest case was based on testimony from a woman who had infiltrated the group in 2022 after picking up a card in a cemetery that contained the message "There is Hope" and gave contact information.
The Informant’s Methods
The woman said she had suffered a bereavement and expressed interest in the Bible. Over the next two years she cultivated the group of believers, secretly recording conversations with them and delivering them to the FSB, Lopes said.
Impact on the Jehovah’s Witnesses
He said the exploitation of the group's kindness to a stranger proved "how wrong it is to criminalize a faith that makes people good neighbors".
Statements from the Accused
Before being sentenced, Petrochenko told the court that she was innocent, did not regret her actions and had not lost her faith in people.
Petrochenko’s Court Statement
"I genuinely wanted to support a person who had supposedly lost a loved one. I asked nothing of her, nor did I offer her anything... I caused no harm to her or to the constitutional order," she said.
FSB Tactics and Ongoing Persecution
According to the Jehovah's Witnesses, the FSB has frequently used informants to infiltrate prayer cells and make secret recordings in order to obtain evidence for prosecutions.
Current Imprisonment Statistics
Lopes said 174 Witnesses — 159 men and 15 women — are currently in prison in Russia.
(Reporting by Mark Trevelyan in LondonEditing by Gareth Jones)
