The last word of the defendant Igor Trifonov in Surgut

 RUSSIA 

The last word of the defendant Igor Trifonov in Surgut

November 9 , 2023

Khanty-Mansiysk JSC

The believer explained to the court that his constitutional right to believe in God is not a crime: "The usual confession of his faith together with others, which, in fact, is imputed to me, is not prohibited by law by anyone."

Transcript of the court session in the Surgut City Court of 09.11.2023 on the case № 1-27/2023 (1-130/2022; 1-1348/2021) on the charges of Igor Petrovich Trifonov and others . in committing a crime under Part 1 of Article 282.2 and Part 1 of Article 282.3 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation.

Trifonov Igor Petrovich:

Your Honor, dear prosecutor and participants of the trial, dear defenders, friends, the trial has actually come to an end at this stage. What the sequel will be depends largely on the verdict. In any case, I want to thank all the participants in the process for their hard work and for their kind attitude towards us. Special thanks to our lawyers, many thanks to the friends who regularly came to support us.

In April 2017, scientists and engineers successfully solved a complex technical problem. Eight powerful telescopes have been installed in different parts of the world, from Spain to the South Pole. Then they were very finely tuned and synchronized with each other. As a result, a super telescope was obtained, the power of which was enough to consider previously inaccessible objects.

In particular, the creators were interested in the galaxy M-87, which is located about 50 million light-years from Earth. According to scientists, there should be a huge black hole in the center of this galaxy, larger than the entire solar system. For decades, scientific theories have predicted that objects like black holes actually exist. But there has been no documentary confirmation of this so far. And with the help of a super telescope on April 10, 2019, the first image of a black hole was finally obtained.

It took two whole years to confirm this truth, as well as our process. Today all the evidence has been collected. Both to prove one and the other, it is necessary to know and apply the laws and principles well. These are the laws of physics and mathematics, the laws of the Constitution and criminal law.

As for the first ones. For example, Isaac Newton said that the laws of motion underlying the law of gravitation are inertia, the force of action and reaction. It is known that in order for a car engine to work efficiently, a certain proportion between fuel and air must be observed, therefore, in order to achieve optimal engine operation, engineers create complex mechanical and computer systems. This requires knowledge of the laws of physics and mathematics. If this is the case with a simple engine, then what can be said about the efficient "gorenje" of stars, for example our Sun? The main forces involved in this are precisely adjusted, optimally calculated to maintain life.

Four fundamental physical interactions affect everything that surrounds us, guarantee the continuation of life not only on our planet, but also in the entire material universe. What are these interactions? Many are familiar with them.

The gravitational interaction at the atomic level is very weakly expressed. Its influence on large objects is more noticeable: planets, stars, galaxies.

Electromagnetic interaction plays a major role in the attraction of protons and electrons to each other, which makes the formation of molecules possible. One of the manifestations of the power of this interaction is lightning.

The strong interaction (nuclear interaction) "glues" protons and neutrons in the nucleus of an atom.

The weak interaction controls the decay of radioactive elements and the effective thermonuclear activity of the Sun.

If these four interactions in the universe were not precisely regulated, then the chemical elements necessary for our life, in particular carbon, oxygen and iron, could not exist. What an amazing accuracy! If we make the slightest mistake, then the material universe will not be able to exist, and life itself, of course.

These are just some facts that speak about the wisdom of our Creator, in whose image and likeness we humans were created. All that people can do today is to study God's creations, discover new laws, and also imitate him, if, of course, they want to. To do this, you need to study the Bible.

To live in a relatively safe world, every country has a Constitution and a Criminal Code. And as for our process, I also got acquainted with the legal laws. There is an obvious analogy here. If you make a mistake, the consequences can also be critical, but not on the scale of the universe. The lives of many people can suffer, and innocent people who have families and children, sick, elderly parents.

Your Honor, I just have to touch on a spiritual topic in the last word. I am completely sure that, just as physical laws work, so do spiritual or moral ones. I want to be sure that the laws that are written in the Constitution of the Russian Federation also apply in our country.

I want to note that a lot has already been said about the Word of God, the Bible, throughout the trial, especially in the transcripts (Bible study with Alexey Mironov), where I also tried to convey thoughts about the accuracy of God's laws and the importance of studying them, and then applying them in life. Thus in 2 Timothy 3:16, 17 it says: "All Scripture is inspired by God and is useful: it helps to teach, to rebuke, to correct, to instruct on the right path, so that the servant of God is fully fit and well prepared for any good deed."

During two conversations with Alexey Mironov, the main motive on my part was love for God and neighbors. I wanted to convey to him this truth that studying God's laws and applying them in life leads to success. And happiness depends on success. I wanted to help him.

From what motives do they provide assistance? Out of love, not out of hatred or extremist motives. Our Creator, Jehovah God, has four main qualities: love, strength, justice and wisdom. Applying these qualities simultaneously in any business, he created a world of amazing beauty. He is called a happy God in the Bible (1 Timothy 1:11). He gave us perfect laws because He wants us to be happy too. For example, it is written in Isaiah 48:17b, 18: "I am teaching you for your own benefit, leading you along the path that you should walk. If you would only be attentive to my commandments! Then your world would become like a river and your righteousness like the waves of the sea."

What does it mean "the world would become like a river"? We are talking here about the inner state of a person. In the modern world, millions of people suffer from emotional disorders. For example, bipolar disorder or some form of depression. It is the study of the Bible that helps to get rid of such ailments.

And what does "righteousness is like the waves of the sea" mean? Have you ever caught yourself thinking that living by the righteous standards of Jehovah from day to day, from year to year is simply unrealistic? Remember, the waves have been running nonstop on the beach for thousands of years, and you have no doubt that this will continue. Your righteousness can be the same as the waves of the sea. In what sense? You can always, unceasingly live in accordance with the righteous principles of God. The Bible gives such power. And each of us can get this power. It's wonderful! This is happiness — to live according to the norms of God.

In order to make it clear whether extremism is present in this case, many materials of the criminal case were re-read in this hall, many witnesses were interrogated, and the points of view of all the defendants and their lawyers were heard. The Word of God says: "Do not accept an accusation against an elder, unless it is confirmed by two or three witnesses." This principle also applies to judicial matters. We saw only one witness who accused us — this is Alexey Mironov. There was neither a second nor a third. It's impossible not to notice such a gap, Your Honor. It's like a huge black hole, which was not only discovered theoretically, but also found documentary confirmation of this fact thanks to a powerful super telescope. But more than forty defenders recorded this in the debates of the trial and attached their conclusions to the documents.

Now a little bit about the criminal case itself. I am accused of organizing the activities of a liquidated legal entity of a local religious organization, but this has not been proven. I have not tried to carry out the activities of a legal entity, have not tried to revive it and have nothing to do with it. I was arbitrarily appointed the actual head, although I have never been one. The prosecution arbitrarily confused the concepts of the MRO's activity with the canonical structure, without having any grounds for that.

Is what I did a crime? No. I only professed my religious beliefs as an individual, and my involvement in the canonical structure is arbitrarily interpreted as the organization of the activities of a legal entity. The fact that I used the site at meetings of the meeting jw.org — nothing but a lie. The information about this is of an assumed nature and refers to inadmissible evidence. I have not funded any extremist organizations. And the usual confession of one's faith together with others, which, in fact, is imputed to me, is not prohibited by law by anyone.

I ask the court to pass a fair sentence, for which years later it will not be ashamed before God and people.

Case Summary

 Region:

 Khanty-Mansi Autonomous Okrug

 Locality:

 Surgut

 What is suspected:

 “Gave speeches, participated in field service with local Jehovah’s Witnesses, held meetings with “pioneers”, “elders” and “ministerial servants”, including for the purpose of organizing the activities of the “elders” in the “congregation” “Vzletnoye”  "

 Criminal case number:

 42002007709000023

 Case initiated:

 February 11, 2019

 Current stage of the case:

 Trial before the court of first instance

 Investigates:

 Investigative Department for the city of Surgut Investigative Directorate of the Russian Federation for the Khanty-Mansiysk Autonomous Okrug

 Articles of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation:

 282.2 (1), 282.3 (1), 282.2 (2)

 Court case number:

 No. 1-27/2023 (1-130/2022; 1-1348/2021)

 Court:

 Surgut City Court

 Judge:

 Dmitry Lupin