In Smolensk, Viktor Malkov, 61, Died Suddenly. Released After Eight Months in Pre-trial Detention, He Succumbed Before Court Date

On April 26, 2020, a year after his arrest, one of Jehovah's Witnesses from Smolensk, Viktor Malkov, died. Before the criminal case, he worked as a driver, helped an elderly mother and a disabled brother, was a loving husband and a reliable friend. For his faith, Victor spent eight months in a pre-trial detention center and three months under house arrest. This undermined Viktor Malkov’s already poor health.

Ridiculous charges, arrest and many months in prison undermined the already poor health of Viktor Malkov. A week after his arrest, he wrote from pre-trial detention center No. 1 in the Smolensk region: "Chronic diseases, coronary heart disease, blood vessels, kidney problems have worsened. I do not receive proper treatment, although I have repeatedly consulted a doctor. There are no medicines here that I need."

5 months after his arrest, in September 2019, the lawyer shared his impressions of visiting Viktor Malkov in the pre-trial detention center: "Throughout his imprisonment, Viktor continued to maintain a positive attitude, smiling a lot. Employees of the pre-trial detention center said that thanks to communication with Malkov, other detainees began to violate the regime less.

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At the same time, Victor's health continued to deteriorate. The lawyer says: "He experienced pain in the heart area, and other diseases began to progress. In all the cells where he was kept, he sat with smokers, for some time there were 24 people in the cell, 23 of them smoked" (Jehovah's Witnesses do not smoke for religious reasons - ed.).

The security forces repeatedly offered him to incriminate himself and his fellow believers in exchange for freedom, but he refused. In December 2019, investigator G.P. Bezrukov from the FSB of Russia in the Smolensk region still insisted that Viktor be kept in a pre-trial detention center. However, the court released him under house arrest.

"After his detention, all his illnesses worsened," said Viktor Malkov's lawyer, "but it turned out to be a vicious circle. The court's decision on house arrest stated that he could leave the premises to receive medical care with the permission of the investigating and supervisory authorities. The investigator allows her to visit the clinic, Victor calls the inspector, and she says that she does not have permission. Victor informs her that he has it, he can bring it. To this, the inspector says that if Viktor leaves the house, it will be a violation of the regime.

As of the end of April 2020, the criminal case against Viktor Malkov and three of his co-religionists — Yevgeny Deshko, Ruslan Korolev and Valery Shalev — has not yet been submitted to the court.