Yet Another Family of Jehovah’s Witnesses in Chelyabinsk Condemned to Years of Separation: Oleg Artemov Sentenced to 6.5 Years in Penal Colony

On 29 April 2026, the Kalininskiy District Court of Chelyabinsk handed down a guilty verdict against Oleg Artemov; he was taken into custody in the courtroom. According to the investigation, the believer took part in religious meetings and paid for video conferencing used for meetings for worship. The court deemed this lawful activity extremism.

"When the case was initiated, I understood that it would most likely end in a prison term," Artemov said. The defense intends to appeal the verdict.

Oleg has spent most of his life in Chelyabinsk. After finishing school, he worked as a mechanic at a bowling center and later renovated apartments. He enjoys sports, outings to lakes, and filming funny videos. On September 8, 2022, a 3-hour search was carried out at Artemov's flat. He recalls: "They seized my phone, where for more than 2 years I had been saving work notes and video content for my professional development. All those efforts went down the drain." A year and a half later, Colonel Aleksandr Chepenko, known for his serial prosecution of believers, initiated criminal cases against Artemov — two at once. According to law enforcement, the believer "on at least five occasions... took part... in religious meetings" and "made at least 20 payments... paying for 'Zoom'... to ensure that meetings were held... by videoconference."

The Kalininskiy District Court of Chelyabinsk heard the case for just over a year. During that time, Artemov experienced both joyful events and tragic losses. Oleg met Yuliya, who came to court to support him; later she became his wife. "It was nerve‑racking to go to her parents and say: 'Hello, I want to make your daughter the wife of a 'criminal','" Oleg joked. Just a month after the wedding, the believer's father died of a stroke. Now Artemov has been deprived of his freedom.

At the very start of the proceedings, Oleg stated: "I believe that I am being discriminated against on the grounds of belonging to a religious minority." Later, while testifying, he specifically emphasized: "The prosecutor's assertion that all believers in the city of Chelyabinsk... automatically became members of a legal entity... is fundamentally incorrect," and he recalled the explanations of the Plenum of the RF Supreme Court of 28 October 2021, which state that Jehovah's Witnesses "are not prohibited from holding meetings for worship."

Sentences against believers in Chelyabinsk have already separated three families for many years — lengthy prison terms were handed down last year to Maksim Khamatshin and Andrey Shurygin.