Nikolay Voishchev, 69, Released from Colony

On April 28, 2025, Nikolay Voishchev was released. For his faith in Jehovah God, he spent more than 900 days (about 30 months) in prison: a little less than a year in a pre-trial detention center, and the rest of the time in a colony. Voishchev served his sentence in Almetyevsk, which is almost 2000 kilometers from his home.

Nikolay, being a man of good disposition, maintained good relations with other prisoners throughout his term. Due to his retirement age, the believer did not work in the colony yet took training as a boiler room operator.

Imprisonment in a pre-trial detention center and penal colony exacerbated Nikolay's already poor health. Even before his arrest, he was diagnosed with a tumor that required treatment. At first, he did not receive the necessary medicines in the pre-trial detention center, but later they began to give them to him. He was also sent for examination to the regional hospital. The believer suffered from severe headaches, including those related to the stress he had endured. Due to frequent stay near smokers, hypertension worsened.

Despite all the difficulties, Nikolai did not despair. Throughout his imprisonment, he was supported by relatives and friends. He emphasizes that the trials did not weaken him. "I have been a Christian for over 50 years. Of course, what happened to me did not change my convictions," Nikolay Voishchev said after his release.

In May 2025, another Jehovah's Witness from Adygea, Inver Siyukhov, is to be released. He was sentenced to six years in prison because of his faith.