Jehovah's Witnesses from Yugorsk Fined. They Were Previously Fully Acquitted

On June 8, 2026, Judge Valeriy Kolobaev of the Yugorskiy District Court found Ivan Sorokin, 47, and Andrey Zhukov, 53, guilty of extremism. They were fined 700,000 and 650,000 rubles, respectively. The prosecutor had asked for 9 years in a general regime penal colony for each man.

Their alleged crime was holding religious meetings and discussions of Bible topics. In August 2023, the trial court fully acquitted Andrey and Ivan. However, the court of appeal overturned that decision and sent the case for a new hearing.

During years of persecution, both believers spent time in a temporary detention facility, were placed under a recognizance agreement, and had their bank accounts blocked. The Zhukov family was expecting their second child during that period, while the Sorokin family was raising two children, the younger of whom was a minor.

The believers still do not admit any guilt. Andrey Zhukov emphasized: "Because of my religious beliefs, it is unacceptable for me to promote any extremist ideas or incite enmity and hatred... I simply want to follow the example of Jesus Christ, who conducted his ministry together with his disciples and shared the good news with others."

In two similar cases involving the retrial of acquittals — the Barmakin case and the Khabarov case — the believers received terms in a penal colony: 8 years and 2 years 4 months, respectively. However, in the case of Kabardino-Balkaria residents Yuriy Zalipaev and Kirill Gushchin, the acquittals — after a series of retrials and appeals — remained in force.