In the photo: Svetlana Monis with her husband Alam Aliyev, October 31, 2022, Birobidzhan

In the photo: Svetlana Monis with her husband Alam Aliyev, October 31, 2022, Birobidzhan

In the photo: Svetlana Monis with her husband Alam Aliyev, October 31, 2022, Birobidzhan

Unjust Verdicts

The Birobidzhan District Court Again Issued a Verdict in the Case of the Believer Svetlana Monis — 2.5 Years Suspended Sentence

Jewish Autonomous Area

On October 31, 2022, the retrial of the case of Svetlana Monis was completed in the Birobidzhan District Court of the Jewish Autonomous Region. The result was a suspended sentence of 2.5 years for believing in Jehovah God — the same sentence was given by the regional court at the first appeal.

Svetlana Monis' sentence includes a two-year probationary period, as well as a one-year restriction of freedom. The believer insists on her complete innocence, which she stated at the stage of the debate of the parties. She has the right to appeal the verdict again in the court of appeals.

The starting point of the criminal prosecution of Monis was Operation Doomsday, which took place in May 2018 in Birobidzhan. A year and a half later, the believer was accused of participating in the activities of an extremist organization for practicing her religion. Monis' legal battle has been ongoing since March 2020. First, Svetlana was fined, later the regional court toughened the sentence. The cassation returned the case to the stage of appeal, which, in turn, sent it to a new consideration in the court of first instance. The hearings began in the spring of 2022. After seven months, the prosecutor again requested four years of imprisonment in a colony for the believer.

The Birobidzhan District Court is also considering the case of Svetlana's husband, Alam Aliyev. It is expected that it will enter the stage of debates in November 2022.

In June 2022, the European Court of Human Rights concluded that the persecution of Jehovah's Witnesses unleashed in Russia is groundless.

The Case of Monis in Birobidzhan

Case History
In September 2019, a criminal case was initiated against Svetlana Monis, a foreign language teacher. A year earlier, an investigator detained her husband, Alam Aliyev, during a massive FSB special operation in Birobidzhan. Monis, along with other believers, was charged with participating in the activity of an extremist organization. For more than 16 months, the believer was under a recognizance agreement. In February 2021, the court imposed a fine on her. But 3 months later, the court of appeal toughened the sentence, imposing a 2.5-year suspended sentence on the believer. In December 2021, the court of cassation returned the case to the appellate stage, which, in turn, overturned the verdict and returned the case for a new trial. Its result was a suspended sentence of 2.5 years. In 2023, during the third appeal hearing this decision was upheld, later the court of cassation left it unchanged.
Timeline

Persons in case

Monis
Svetlana

Criminal case

Region:
Jewish Autonomous Area
Locality:
Birobidzhan
Suspected of:
According to the investigation she “directly participated... in disseminating the teachings of Jehovah's Witnesses... by improving her preaching skills and other religious activities”
Court case number:
11907990001000016
Initiated:
September 26, 2019
Current case stage:
the verdict entered into force
Investigating:
Investigative Department of the FSB Directorate of Russia for the Jewish Autonomous Region
Articles of Criminal Code of Russian Federation:
282.2 (2)
Court case number:
1-297/2022
Court:
Birobidzhan District Court of the Jewish Autonomous Region
Judge:
Yuliya Tsykina
Case History
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