Court In Kuban Gave Yelena Rumyantseva Suspended Sentence for Her Faith. Earlier, Her Daughter Received Same Punishment

On October 15, 2025, Yelizaveta Proskuryakova, judge of the Vyselkovskiy District Court, gave Yelena Rumyantseva, 53, a 2-year suspended sentence with 6 months restriction of freedom based on charges of extremism. Shortly before that, her daughter, Vasilina Penskaya, was given a suspended sentence. Both women are Jehovah's Witnesses.

In recent years, Yelena has gone through a lot — the sudden death of her husband in 2019, the illness and death of her father in 2021; her mother had a stroke and still needs constant care. In 2022, Yelena's house was searched, her daughter Vasilina was prosecuted, and after a while the Investigative Committee also initiated a case against Yelena. A month later, Rosfinmonitoring blocked her accounts, which caused difficulties with her work.

"I tried to stay strong after the search," the believer recalls. "It seemed as if I was tough enough to handle it. But that only lasted for so long. Then I had an emotional breakdown. After all we're not made of steel." The support of friends and other people who cared, helped Yelena cope with what was happening. She said: "People you don't know make many sacrifices, traveling from many kilometers to the courthouse just to be there with you. This is amazing and touching. They also help financially... I have everything I need and even more."

Yelena's case went to court at the same time as her daughter's case, at the end of December 2023. Later, the judge in the case changed, and the trial began anew. During the hearings, the defense drew attention to numerous violations. The secret witness could not say anything specific about Rumyantseva except that she was present at the meetings for worship, and one of the expert studies had nothing to do with her. The investigator admitted that material evidence did not contain anything relevant to the case. The court also attached to the case file two certificates and a letter of thanks — from the management of the Berezanskaya Art School for many years of cooperation and support, from the administration of the Vyselkovskiy Municipality and from the Department of Consumer Affairs of the Krasnodar Territory for conscientious work.

"Unfortunately, sincere faith is not always met with understanding," the believer noted in her final statement. — "Fear, misunderstandings, or rumors can turn good deeds and simple religious meetings into something suspicious. But I want to be clear: my faith is based on love. It teaches me to be honest, kind and respectful to everyone. It has nothing to do with extremism."

The case of Yelena Rumyantseva is one of 11 initiated by investigators against believers from Vyselki. In total, 38 Jehovah's Witnesses have already been prosecuted in the Krasnodar Territory; one of them died in custody without having received the necessary medical care.