Name: Kovadnev Nikolay Yegorovich
Date of Birth: October 23, 1960
Current status: convicted person
Articles of Criminal Code of Russian Federation: 282.2 (1)
Current restrictions: obligation to appear
Sentence: imprisonment for a period of 6 years conditionally with a probation period of 4 years, with deprivation of the right to engage in activities related to leadership and participation in the work of public organizations and associations for a period of 4 years

Biography

On May 25, 2023, the homes of the believing spouses Nikolay and Marina Kovadnev were searched with the participation of riot police, after which Marina, who suffers from cancer, deteriorated sharply. She passed away 2 months later.

Nikolay was born in 1960 in the village of Razdolnoye (Primorye Territory) in a family of workers. He has a younger brother. In childhood and adolescence, Nikolay loved to fish and ride a motorcycle.

After graduating from the institute, in 1983, Nikolay moved to Komsomolsk-on-Amur. For some time he lived in Vladivostok. Nikolay worked as an accountant in various software maintenance firms. Now he is retired, he likes to take care of the cottage: grow vegetables and berries, make preparations for the winter.

At the age of 35, Nikolay became interested in the Bible. From it he learned a great deal about God. He was particularly impressed by the fact that most of the world's inhabitants can read this book in their native language. In 1995, the man embarked on the Christian path.

In 2012, Nikolay married Marina. By that time, they had known each other for several years. The spouses have no joint children. Marina shared her husband's views on life. She was fond of drawing and making crafts, she gave her works to friends.

Nikolay's relatives do not understand why he was prosecuted.

Case History

In May 2023, civilians in the city of Komsomolsk-on-Amur, as well as the village of Khurba and the village of Molodezhniy, were subjected to night searches because of their religion. The investigation initiated a criminal case against 10 believers: Vasiliy Bondarev and his mother Irina, Sergey Sachnev and his wife Ulita, Nikolay Kovadnev, Ivan Nikitin, Mikhail Dorofeev, Radion Shitov, Marina Voytko and Svetlana Zharkova. They were charged with involvement in the activities of a banned organization. In 2024, the prosecutor’s office returned the case to the investigator twice. In October of the same year, it went to court. All the defendants were included in the Rosfinmonitoring list, which made it difficult for them to pay bills and dispose of their property. In October 2025, the court sentenced Dorofeev, Kovadnev and Shitov to 6 years of suspended sentence, and the Bondarevs, the Sachnevs, Zharkova, Voytko and Nikitin to 2 years of suspended sentence. Among the convicts are 5 people over 60.
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