Unjust Verdicts

In Vladivostok, the Appeal Upheld Liya Maltseva's Sentence for Professing the Faith of Jehovah's Witnesses

Primorye Territory

On November 1, 2022, the Primorye Territory Court in Vladivostok upheld the sentence for Liya Maltseva from the town of Partizansk. This 53-year-old woman with a group II disability was sentenced to 2 years and 3 months of suspended sentence for participating in the activities of an extremist organization. This is how the court regarded the peaceful profession of faith in Jehovah God.

The verdict has entered into force. The believer still insists on her innocence. She has the right to appeal the verdict in cassation.

In the Court of Appeal, Liya Maltseva drew attention to the fact that not a single statement or action of hers, in which hatred, violence or enmity was manifested, was presented to the court of lower instance. She stressed: "The State Prosecution has not demonstrated that I participated in any socially dangerous activity. All the evidence examined in the trial court only shows that I discussed the Bible and its teachings with other people. I participated in a peaceful worship service, where I sang songs, listened to a Bible speech, studied a religious text that was not included in the federal list of extremist materials. All this was of an exclusively peaceful nature".

The believer has been under house arrest since August 2020. Then a search was conducted in her apartment, and Maltseva herself was subjected to a psychiatric examination, for which she had to go to Ussuriysk, 200 km from home. The basis of the criminal case was the testimony of one of the participants in the religious service, who conducted covert videotaping of the meetings of believers.

In Primorye Territory, criminal cases were opened on similar charges against 44 other people. The sentences for 13 of them have already entered into force.

The case of Maltseva in Partizansk

Case History
Liya Maltseva from Partizansk has a disability. In June 2020, she faced prosecution for her faith in Jehovah God — a criminal case was initiated against her for extremism. The case was based on covert video footage of a meeting for worship, which Maltseva had attended. A month later, Rosfinmonitoring added Liya to the list of terrorists and extremists, and after another month her house was searched. The believer was taken for interrogation, and then placed under a recognizance agreement. The Investigative Committee of the Russian Federation accused her of participating in the activity of a religious association banned by the court. In May 2021, the case went to the city court. Witnesses interrogated for the prosecution stated that they did not hear hate speech from Liya against representatives of other religions. As a result, in September 2022, Liya Maltseva was given a 2-year and 3-month suspended sentence and 7 months restriction of liberty. The court of appeal and court of cassation upheld the verdict.
Timeline

Persons in case

Criminal case

Region:
Primorye Territory
Locality:
Partizansk
Court case number:
12002050018000048
Initiated:
June 1, 2020
Current case stage:
the verdict entered into force
Investigating:
Investigative Department for the city of Partizansk of the Investigative Directorate of the Investigative Committee of the Russian Federation for the Primorsky Territory
Articles of Criminal Code of Russian Federation:
282.2 (2)
Court case number:
1-6/2022 (1-131/2021)
Court:
Партизанский городской суд Приморского края
Judge:
Александр Ягубкин
[i18n] Суд апелляционной инстанции:
Приморский краевой суд
Case History