In Kerch, Law Enforcers Crushed Windows When Raiding Houses of Believers During a "Survey". A Father of Two Young Children Was Detained

On the 26 of May 2020, armed security groups conducted a series of raids in Kerch. At least seven believers, including the elderly, were questioned. Five of them were taken to the investigation department and later released all but Artem Shabliy, 29, who had been detained for two days.

In the early morning, groups of 7-10 law enforcement officers, including representatives of the Rosgvardia and masked armed riot police, came to the homes of local residents of Kerch at four addresses under the pretext of "examining premises, buildings and structures.

During the special operation in the house of Artem Shabliy, who lives with his wife, mother and children, 2 and 4 years old, the law enforcers broke the windows in the entrance hall. The law enforcers put the cuffs on Artem himself and took them off only a few hours later, already after the interrogation in the local law enforcement department.

According to eyewitnesses, one of the organizers of the raid orally mentioned that a criminal case under article 282.2 of the RF Criminal Code had been initiated against Shabliy, but no documentary evidence was provided. It is known that the case was initiated by investigator Valery Zarubin. He accuses a believer of "involving others in the activities of an extremist organization" while talking to them about the Bible.

While Artem was interrogated in the building of the Investigative Committee, his wife remained at home with her children, but later she was called for questioning and released the same day. The investigator tried to put pressure on the woman, threatening to "put" her husband. Artem was placed in a temporary detention facility.

Special operation at the other three addresses lasted about three hours. In one of the cases, the security guards broke the entrance gate. Electronic devices, printed media and some documents were seized from the believers. They were also taken for interrogation to the Investigative Department, where they remained for about two hours. In none of the cases were the owners presented with court orders to hold special events, and copies of the "examination" reports were not provided.

Recently, Crimean law enforcers have increased pressure on those who profess the beliefs of Jehovah's Witnesses. On May 26, 2020, the court sent Sergey Filatov, a resident of Dzhankoy, to the general regime colony for 6 years. His fault was a Bible study with children and friends. Before that Yalta resident Artem Gerasimov was fined 400 thousand for talking to people about God. Currently the case of Victor Stashevsky, a resident of Sevastopol, who is unreasonably accused of extremism because he believes in Jehovah, is in court hearings.