One of Jehovah's Witnesses from Chelyabinsk Received 5.5 Years of Prison for Faith in God

On May 12, 2025, Judge Yuliya Zhivodinskaya sentenced 49-year-old Andrey Shurygin, an electrician from Chelyabinsk, to 5 years and 6 months of penal colony. Reading and discussing the Bible with fellow believers is recognized as "organizing the activity of an extremist organization."

The verdict has not entered into force and can be appealed.

The criminal prosecution of Andrey Shurygin began with surveillance, searches and interrogations in June 2023. Against the backdrop of a strong shock, the believer experienced a short-term cardiac arrest. "During the search, the front door and balcony were broken, there were many different thoughts in my head, and various emotions were also mixed," Andrey recalls. "The investigator and operatives, with the help of intimidation, threats and persuasion, wanted to get passwords to our phones. And in the Investigative Committee they said: 'Renounce God and live in peace.'"

Over the past 8 months, the case has been considered in the Sovetskiy District Court of Chelyabinsk, where another believer, 28-year-old Maxim Khamatshin, is on trial.

Shurygin's accusation is based on covert video and audio recordings of worship meetings. Neither the witnesses nor the expert confirmed the presence of extremism in the actions of the believer, which was noted by the defense. Shurygin also reminded the court of the ruling of the Plenum of the Supreme Court of the Russian Federation, according to which meetings for worship of Jehovah's Witnesses are not a crime in themselves. "The fact that the state prosecutor avoids even mentioning these explanations in every possible way only confirms that he has no real arguments about the inadmissibility of holding meetings for worship," Andrey concluded.

The defense presented to the court documents confirming Shurygin's reputation as a respectable person: references from his work place, management company, neighbors, as well as certificates from the school where the defendant's two children study. However, the state prosecutor asked for 7 years in prison for the believer.

In total, 11 criminal cases were initiated in the city of Chelyabinsk, including against the couple Suvorovs. All cases against Jehovah's Witnesses were initiated by the investigator of the Investigative Committee of the Russian Federation Chepenko. The European Court of Human Rights found groundless the accusations of Russian Jehovah's Witnesses of extremism.