Name: Oleynik Tatyana Nikolayevna
Date of Birth: February 16, 1952
Current status: convicted person
Articles of Criminal Code of Russian Federation: 282.2 (2)
Current restrictions: suspended sentence
Sentence: punishment in the form of 4 years of imprisonment with restriction of liberty for a period of 1 year, the punishment is considered conditional with a probationary period of 4 years

Biography

Having moved to Novosibirsk in 1983, Tatyana Oleynik had no idea that many years later she would face criminal prosecution in this city because of her faith. In the fall of 2021, the security forces came to her with a search. For the woman, this was a shock: “I do not feel safe: the constant feeling that someone is eavesdropping or peeping. I am always on the alert, because at any moment they can break into me again. ”

Tatyana was born in February 1952 in the village of Khrushchevo, Tula Region. She has a younger sister. Their mother died when Tatiana was five years old.

Tatyana's independent life began when she left home at the age of fifteen. The girl graduated from a school at a meat processing plant, and later received a profession that became her life's work—Tatyana worked as a crane operator for 41 years. Now she is retired.

Tatyana is an active person. In her youth, she danced in an ensemble of Moldovan folk dances. Now he likes to get out in the Altai in the summer, go hiking in the mountains.

Tatyana loves to read since childhood. She recalls: "This hobby was a salvation from a difficult situation in the family." When Tatyana was already in adulthood, the Bible attracted her attention. She recalls the day she was given the book: “That same evening, after putting the children to bed, I sat down to read, opened it right in the middle, and I came across the books of Proverbs and Ecclesiastes. I spent the whole night rereading them and realized how wrong I was living”. Thanks to the Bible, much has changed for the better in Tatyana's life. In 2001, she embarked on the Christian path.

Tatyana moved several times—as a child she lived in Volgograd, then in Yekaterinburg and in the Crimea. In 1983, she moved with her children to Novosibirsk, where she had the opportunity to get a decent education. Tatyana raised a son and a daughter.

After the searches, Tatyana was left without electronic devices, as law enforcement officers confiscated them. The believer had to look for a part-time job. Her bank card was blocked, and for some time she had difficulty receiving her pension.

Although the children do not share Tatyana's religious views, they wonder why this peaceful woman is considered a criminal.

Case History

In April 2019, in the Novosibirsk Region, law enforcement officers raided the homes of Jehovah’s Witnesses, including the home of pensioner Tatyana Oleynik. Based on the information collected by an undercover agent, the FSB initiated a criminal case against three believers. In October 2021, the materials regarding Tatyana were made into separate proceedings, and a month later the investigation initiated a criminal case against her. The believer from Novosibirsk was accused of participating in extremist activity for providing her apartment for meetings with fellow believers and participating in meetings for worship. She was added to the Rosfinmonitoring list of extremists. In December 2022, Tatyana Oleynik’s case went to court. In August 2023, the believer was given a 4-year suspendend sentence.