Jehovah's Witnesses From Komi Fined for Their Faith. Woman, 72, and Three Men Must Pay from 300,000 to 500,000 Rubles

The Syktyvkar City Court found the believers guilty of extremism and fined Lidiya Nekrasova — 300,000 rubles, Aleksandr Kruglyakov — 470,000 rubles, Aleksandr Ketov and Andrey Kharlamov — 500,000 rubles each. About 50 attended the announcement of the verdict on December 22, 2025.

"I am proud that I suffered not as a villain, but as a Christian," Aleksandr Kruglyakov, 46, expressed his opinion on what was happening. "In the 1990s, I was a villain, I was even tried. Many of my former friends are already dead." He believes that studying the Bible with Jehovah's Witnesses helped him to change drastically: "I stopped abusing alcohol, taking drugs, quit smoking, stopped stealing and getting into fights... Such changes helped me stay alive."

Aleksandr spent almost 2 months in the pretrial detention center. His bank account, like the accounts of the other defendants in the case, was blocked. Aleksandr lost his job and could not find a new one. His wife, who needed expensive medical treatment, was forced to provide for the family alone. Property was seized from the other believers.

Pensioner Aleksandr Ketov, 57, who spent 2 months under house arrest, described how he felt: "It's an unpleasant feeling — though you didn't violate anything, you're forced to sit at home waiting for a verdict that won't be fair."

In his final statement, Andrey Kharlamov, 54, said: "I felt like a person without rights. They called me a criminal and an extremist, placed me under house arrest, threatened me, saying: "You will go to jail", blocked my accounts, and seized my apartment. All motions that were filed were rejected by the investigator. I had always lived quietly, peacefully, didn't have any conflicts or quarrels with anyone, so it was the first time I had encountered such treatment just because I'm a believer."

In January 2026, Lidiya Nekrasova will turn 73. During the prosecution, she experienced not only the hardships of the investigation and trial, but also a personal tragedy — her husband died last year. She said that caring people helped her cope with the difficulties. "Fellow believers, whom I didn't even know, called from different places. They brought me flowers, invited me over to their place, we ate treats and sang songs together," she said.

"In total, I received about 1500 letters from 42 countries," says Aleksandr Kruglyakov in appreciation of the support. "It was a breath of fresh air, filled with love. Sometimes I received up to 125 letters a day."

Sergey Ushakhin did not live to see the end of the trial. He had a disability due to a heart condition. The commission of the Ministry of Health recognized that the believer needed special treatment. Sergey died in August 2023 — a month after receiving the commission's conclusion. Shortly before his death, the believer shared: "I received a very warm message from my friends. They write that they always remember me, how my voice comforted them in difficult times, and it encourages and warms them even now."

The prosecution of the five Jehovah's Witnesses began with searches in 2021. A year later, the criminal case against them went to court, and the trial dragged on for almost 4 years. The believers do not agree with the decision of Judge Yevgeniy Sazhin. In total, 11 Jehovah's Witnesses have already been prosecuted in the Komi Republic.