Jehovah's Witness* from Krasnodar Region Sentenced to Suspended Sentence

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The court sentenced Jehovah's Witness* from the village of Vyselki Vasilina Penskaya to two years of probation.

As "Kavkazsky Uzel" wrote, on July 4, Jehovah's Witness* from the village of Vyselki Irina Ushakova was sentenced to two years of probation.

The court found 27-year-old Jehovah's Witness* from the village of Vyselki Vasilina Penskaya guilty of participating in the activities of an extremist organization, reported on August 4 "OVD-Info"* on its Telegram channel.

In February 2022, searches were conducted in the homes of Penskaya and her mother, in the summer of 2023, a criminal case was opened against her, which was based on the testimony of a secret witness. It is noted that this witness recorded audio and video of religious services, his testimony is included in the case of several believers. At the same time, he stated in court that he did not know Penskaya and could not confirm that she had participated in the services.

The court sentenced Penskaya to two years of probation.

On April 20, 2017, the Supreme Court of Russia, following a lawsuit by the Ministry of Justice, recognized the "Administrative Center of Jehovah's Witnesses in Russia"* and 395 of its branches as extremist organizations, banning their activities, according to the "Caucasian Knot" report "Jehovah's Witnesses* - Extremists or Victims of Lawlessness?". The "Caucasian Knot" posts news about the persecution of Jehovah's Witnesses in Russia on the thematic page "The Justice Department against Jehovah's Witnesses".

* 396 Russian organizations of Jehovah's Witnesses are recognized as extremist, their activities in Russia are prohibited by court order.

** the activities of the Meta company (which owns Facebook, Instagram and WhatsApp) are prohibited in Russia.