Sergey Shulyarenko, Valeriy Kriger, Alam Aliyev and Dmitriy Zagulin at the court. November 2020

Sergey Shulyarenko, Valeriy Kriger, Alam Aliyev and Dmitriy Zagulin at the court. November 2020

Sergey Shulyarenko, Valeriy Kriger, Alam Aliyev and Dmitriy Zagulin at the court. November 2020

Unjust Verdicts

Court of Appeal in the Jewish Autonomous Region Slightly Reduced the Sentences of Two Out of Four Jehovah's Witnesses. They Will All Spend Several Years in Penal Colonies for Their Faith.

Jewish Autonomous Area

On June 1, 2023, the court of the Jewish Autonomous Region, chaired by judge Vitaliy Staretskiy, upheld the verdict against Dmitriy Zagulin, Alam Aliyev, Sergey Shulyarenko and Valeriy Kriger, but reduced the sentences for two of them by 3 months. The verdict has entered into force.

Alam Aliyev will spend 6.5 years in a penal colony, and Dmitriy Zagulin — 3.5 years, as ruled by the court of first instance. The court of appeal reduced the prison terms for Sergey Shulyarenko and Valeriy Kriger by 3 months, and now they have to spend 6 years and 9 months behind bars instead of 7 years. The convicted persons have the right to file cassation appeals.

Friends and relatives of the believers awaiting the decision of the court of appeal
Friends and relatives of the believers awaiting the decision of the court of appeal

The believers maintain their innocence. In their appeal, they pointed out that extremism was imputed to them only for their faith in God, namely for lawful conduct, expressed in the exercise of their constitutional right to freedom of conscience and freedom of religion, which are fundamental and inherent human rights. In particular, Alam Aliyev drew the court's attention to the duty of the state to protect his right to believe in Jehovah God, given to him at birth.

On October 28, 2021, the Plenum of the Supreme Court of the Russian Federation ruled that the meetings for worship of Jehovah's Witnesses, their joint performance of rites and ceremonies, in themselves do not constitute a crime under Article 282.2 of the RF CrC, despite the liquidation of their legal entities.

The Case of Aliyev and Others in Birobidzhan

Case History
In May 2018, a special FSB operation involving 150 officers took place in Birobidzhan under the code name "Judgment Day," marking the beginning of the persecution of more than 20 families of Jehovah's Witnesses. Alam Aliyev, Valeriy Kriger, Sergey Shulyarenko, and Dmitriy Zagulin were among those accused of extremism for holding religious services. They spent more than five months in pretrial detention. In December 2022, after more than two years of hearings, the court sentenced them to between 3.5 and 7 years in a penal colony. On appeal, the harshest of these sentences (given to Krieger) was reduced by three months. In September 2023, Sergey Shulyarenko was married while in the colony. Zagulin completed his sentence in the spring of 2026. The wives of three of the convicted men—Svetlana Monis, Tatyana Zagulina, and Natalya Kriger—were also subjected to criminal prosecution.
Timeline

Persons in case

Aliyev
Alam
Kriger
Valeriy
Shulyarenko
Sergey
Zagulin
Dmitriy

Criminal case

Region:
Jewish Autonomous Area
Locality:
Birobidzhan
Suspected of:
according to the investigation, he together with others conducted meetings for worship, which is interpreted as “organising the activity of an extremist organisation” (with reference to the decision of the RF Supreme Court on the liquidation of all 396 registered organisations of Jehovah’s Witnesses)
Court case number:
11807990001000008
Initiated:
May 14, 2018
Current case stage:
the verdict entered into force
Investigating:
Investigative Department of the FSB Directorate of Russia for the Jewish Autonomous Region
Articles of Criminal Code of Russian Federation:
282.2 (1), 282.3 (1)
Court case number:
1-8/2022 (1-65/2021; 1-609/2020)
Court:
Birobidzhanskiy District Court of the Jewish Autonomous Region
Judge:
Yana Vladimirova
Case History
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