Solntsev Mikhail

Name: Solntsev Mikhail Yuriyevish
Date of Birth: December 26, 1962
Current status: convicted person
Articles of Criminal Code of Russian Federation: 282.2 (2)
Current restrictions: suspended sentence
Sentence: punishment in the form of 3 years of imprisonment, with deprivation of the right to engage in activities related to participation in the work of public religious organizations and associations for a term of 3 years, with restriction of liberty for a term of 10 months, a sentence of imprisonment shall be considered suspended with a probationary period of 2 years

Biography

On March 20, 2019, searches and interrogations of citizens in connection with their Christian beliefs resumed in Magadan. Spouses Mikhail and Oksana Solntsev became new defendants in a criminal case against believers in Magadan, who by this time had already become 13. The investigation believes that they participated in worship services. What do we know about Michael?

Mikhail was born in Novosibirsk in 1962, and a year later he moved to Magadan with his parents. Since childhood he was fond of sports (hockey, football, swimming, skiing). The family often spent weekends in nature: they went hiking, skiing in winter, fishing all year round.

In 1982, Mikhail graduated from the Riga Civil Aviation Flight Technical School and worked as an air traffic controller at Magadan Airport. In 2008, he graduated from the St. Petersburg State University of Civil Aviation with a degree in air traffic control. Since that time, he has been working as a full-time dispatcher-instructor, training young professionals. He is still fond of fishing and enjoys going out into nature, but with his family.

He and his wife Oksana have been together for over 30 years. Oksana was the first in the family to show interest in the Bible, and it became noticeable. "For a long time I did not understand this passion," admits Mikhail. "But my wife's behavior, which was changing for the better, and communication with fellow believers aroused interest in me as well. I also decided to study the Holy Scriptures. It brought me closer to God." The couple raised a daughter who lives with her family in St. Petersburg. Now Mikhail and Oksana are raising an 8-year-old son.

The criminal prosecution of Mikhail and Oksana was a big blow to the whole family, ruined various plans. Oksana wanted to move to Taganrog to take care of her sick parents, but the recognizance not to leave for both spouses did not allow this. Mikhail hoped to finalize it by the end of the year in order to go on a well-deserved rest, but, being under recognizance not to leave, he could not go to Khabarovsk to get an attestation conclusion. He is unable to continue to work and provide for his family. A law-abiding family does not have the opportunity to lead a normal life.

Case History

After a series of searches in Magadan in May 2018, Konstantin Petrov, Yevgeniy Zyablov and Sergey Yerkin were placed in a pretrial detention center. On the same day in Khabarovsk, the home of Ivan Puyda was searched. He was arrested and taken 1,600 km to a pretrial detention center in Magadan. The believers spent 2 to 4 months behind bars, and then ended up under house arrest. In March 2019, the FSB conducted another series of searches. The number of defendants in the case has reached 13, including 6 women and elderly. The investigator deemed holding peaceful meetings for worship as organizing, participating in and financing the activity of an extremist organization. In almost 4 years of investigation, the case materials against the 13 believers has grown to 66 volumes. The case went to court in March 2022. At the hearings, it became clear that the case was based on the testimony of a secret witness – an FSB informant who made covert recordings of peaceful meetings for worship. In March 2024, the believers were given suspended sentences ranging from 3 to 7 years, and the court of appeal later upheld this verdict.
Timeline
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