Jehovah's Witnesses' Homes Were Searched in Mari El, Including the Home of an 83-Year-Old Woman. One Believer Was Arrested

On April 15, 2022, nine dwellings of Jehovah's Witnesses from Yoshkar-Ola and the village of Silikatny (Mari El), as well as in Nizhny Novgorod, were searched. They affected at least 15 people, including an 83-year-old woman. The security forces detained 39-year-old Yevgeniy Plotnikov. He was sent to a detention center.

Searches of peaceful believers began in the morning and lasted from 6 to 8 hours. The security forces were looking for "extremist literature and computer and other equipment, through which communication was carried out with unidentified persons during worship." Electronic devices, bank cards, storage media, notepads and postcards were confiscated.

P. Betkanov, the FSB investigator for the Republic of Mari El, summoned the believers for interrogation. Some subpoenas do not indicate the investigating body, the interrogating officer and the status of the summoned citizens.

As part of the same criminal case in Nizhny Novgorod, a search was carried out at the home of a young family with a newborn child, who had recently moved from Yoshkar-Ola to live with their parents. The raid was led by investigator Mikhail Zaulin and detective Vyacheslav Kalistov. The security forces behaved rudely and exerted psychological pressure, forcing the believers to incriminate themselves. The young father was summoned for interrogation in Yoshkar-Ola, 350 km from home.