Case of Perminov in Asha

Investigator for particularly important cases of the Investigative Directorate of the Investigative Committee of the Russian Federation for the Chelyabinsk Region, Major of Justice Yevgeny Dolgaev, initiates a criminal case against unidentified persons under Part 1 of Article 282.2 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation.

In the town of Asha, Chelyabinsk Region, and neighboring Minyar, searches are being conducted at the homes of 5 families of Jehovah's Witnesses. A search warrant for a disabled person of group I, 49-year-old Andrey Perminov, was issued by the judge of the Traktorozavodsky District Court of Chelyabinsk, Oksana Makarenko. Operational activities are supervised by investigator Dolgaev.

Electronic devices, storage media, bank cards, notebooks with personal notes, a Bible, a homemade Bible game, walkie-talkies, in one case a tape recorder and a CD with songs are seized from believers. During the searches, video is being filmed. Then the believers are interrogated by the Investigative Committee.

The investigator for especially important cases of the Investigative Directorate of the Investigative Committee of the Russian Federation A. V. Chepenko places Andrey Perminov under recognizance not to leave.

The case is submitted to the Ashinsky City Court of the Chelyabinsk Region. Ravil Nusratov is appointed as a judge.

12 listeners are allowed to attend the court session. Prosecution witnesses in the Perminov case are being questioned.

The first to testify is the FSB officer M. E. Kozlov, who carried out operational-search activities. From his point of view, the actions of the defendant were of a religious nature, they did not contain calls for violence and incitement of hatred on any grounds.

According to witnesses, wiretapping was installed in Perminov's apartment, and some telephone conversations of believers were recorded.

During the interrogation, the former Jehovah's Witness confirms that Perminov did not organize a criminal community and that he read excerpts from the Bible at worship services. The people with whom the defendant discussed the biblical canons themselves expressed a desire to talk with him, and the main thing at the services was not Perminov, but Jesus Christ. The witness states that he has never heard calls for violence and hatred from believers.

Several prosecution witnesses claim that Perminov did not declare the superiority of his religion over others and did not voice calls for violent actions.

One of the witnesses in his testimony says that the defendant did not call for his ex-wife to divorce. Also, in the audio recordings that he listened to, there were no calls for violent actions on the part of Perminov.

Prosecution witnesses are being questioned at the hearing. One of them does not know anything on the merits of the case.

Further, the expert Elizaveta Shchetinina, associate professor at Chelyabinsk State University, who conducted a comprehensive religious study of the records of worship, is interrogated. She states: "[On the materials presented] we see a gathering of believers who realize a spiritual need in the context of prayer, the study of the Holy Scriptures. There were no calls for violence, overthrow of the state system in these materials." The expert concludes that the goals of Jehovah's Witnesses' worship services are "joint confession of religion, satisfaction of spiritual needs, service to God on the basis of the Holy Scriptures, teaching religion, including in the format of meetings, cult and prayer practice, analysis of the Holy Scriptures."

Andrey Perminov submits a petition for a repeated comprehensive religious psychological and linguistic examination in a state institution. The court rejects it, and also does not accept the arguments of the defense about the disqualification of experts from Chelyabinsk State University. The lawyer reads out the positive characteristics of Andrey Perminov from the district and local public organization of the disabled.

The defense proposes to partially investigate the telephone conversations recorded during the ORM: according to the lawyer, some points are deciphered incorrectly, which is why the experts drew the wrong conclusions. The court postpones the examination of the records to the next hearing.

Further, the lawyer submits a petition to attach to the case file the decision of the ECHR "LRO of Taganrog and Others v. Russia". The prosecutor asks for time to familiarize himself with this voluminous document.

At the next hearing, the court reviews a 40-minute recording of a Bible-based report on the topic "The Love That Never Passes." After watching it, Andrey Perminov explains to the court that he tries to live in harmony with the biblical norms voiced in the video and show similar love for others.

The court accepts the defendant's petition to listen to the audio recording of his conversation with his wife on the topic "It is important to forgive others."

The court rejects the petition for the attachment of the ECHR ruling in the case of the LRO of Taganrog and Others v. Russia.

Andrey Perminov again submits a petition for a second comprehensive religious psychological and linguistic examination. The court takes time to resolve the petition.

The court refuses to conduct a repeated comprehensive religious psychological and linguistic examination.

The state prosecution is requesting 6 years of suspended imprisonment for Andrey Perminov with a probationary period of 4 years and a one-year ban on leaving the area of residence.

Referee: Ravil Nusratov. Ashinsky City Court of the Chelyabinsk Region (Asha, Lenin St., 1).

In his last speech, Andrey Perminov, a disabled person of group I, explains to the court the inconsistency of the charges against him.