Photo: Andrey Vlasov

Photo: Andrey Vlasov

Photo: Andrey Vlasov

Unjust Verdicts

A Kemerovo Appeals Court Upheld Andrey Vlasov's Sentence: a Seven-Year Imprisonment for His Faith in God

Kemerovo Region

On July 26, 2022, a panel of judges of the Kemerovo Regional Court, chaired by Larisa Korneva, denied 53-year-old Andrey Vlasov from Prokopievsk his appeal against conviction for faith. The verdict of the lower court has entered into force.

Despite this, the believer still insists on his innocence. He has the right to appeal the verdict in the cassation procedure, as well as in international instances.

In May 2022, the judge of the Central District Court of Prokopyevsk, Pavel Kotykhov, found Andrey Vlasov guilty of organizing the activities of an extremist community and sentenced him to 7 years in prison.

Despite the fact that Andrey Vlasov has Degree II disability and cannot do much without the help of his wife, the state prosecutor requested for him 8.5 years of imprisonment. A physically disabled person had to spend two days on temporary detention and a year and 10 months under house arrest. Although he never violated the detention regime, the court repeatedly extended his preventive measure and restricted his access to medical treatment.

The criminal case against Andrey Vlasov was initiated on July 2, 2020 by Ivan Sablin, investigator with the Federal Security Service of Russia for the Kemerovo Region — Kuzbass. The investigation went on for almost a year. In June 2021, the Vlasov case was submitted to the Central District Court of the city of Prokopyevsk.

Currently, 13 Jehovah's Witnesses are being persecuted for their faith in the Kemerovo region. Three of them received suspended sentences. Sergey Britvin and Vadim Levchuk have already been released from the penal colony.

The Case of Vlasov in Prokopyevsk

Case History
In July 2020, a criminal case was initiated against Andrey Vlasov, a disabled Jehovah’s Witness from Prokopyevsk. The FSB accused him of organizing the activity of an extremist organization. Searches were carried out in Vlasov’s home, as well as at his workplace. Despite the fact that he cannot manage without assistance, he was placed in a temporary detention facility, and three days later he was placed under house arrest. In June 2021, the Vlasov case went to court. Although the believer’s health was deteriorating, the court would not let him visit the doctor and repeatedly extended the house arrest. The prosecutor requested 8.5 years imprisonment. In May 2022, the court sentenced Vlasov to 7 years in a penal colony. He was taken into custody in the courtroom and sent to a detention center. There he fell ill, so he was sent to medical correctional institution No.16 of Novokuznetsk. In October 2022, the believer was placed in correctional institution No.3 in Novosibirsk to serve his sentence. Despite the severe health condition of Andrey Vlasov, neither the court of appeal nor the court of cassation mitigated this unprecedented verdict.
Timeline

Persons in case

Vlasov
Andrey

Criminal case

Region:
Kemerovo Region
Locality:
Prokopyevsk
Suspected of:
"Using technology that allows video conferencing ... organized a religious meeting" (from the verdict against Andrey Vlasov)
Court case number:
12007320001000054
Initiated:
July 2, 2020
Current case stage:
the verdict entered into force
Investigating:
Investigative Department of the FSB Directorate of Russia for the Kemerovo Region
Articles of Criminal Code of Russian Federation:
282.2 (1)
Court case number:
1-21/2022 (1-246/2021)
Court:
Tsentralnyy District Court of the City of Prokopyevsk of the Kemerovo Region
Judge of the Court of First Instance:
Pavel Kotykhov
Case History
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