The Supreme Court of Tatarstan Approved the Conviction of Sergey Gromov. A Peaceful Believer Will Go to a Penal Colony for Six Years for His Religious Views

 RUSSIA


The Supreme Court of Tatarstan Approved the Conviction of Sergey Gromov. A Peaceful Believer Will Go to a Penal Colony for Six Years for His Religious Views

February 12, 2024 Tatarstan


On February 9, 2024, the Supreme Court of the Republic of Tatarstan rejected the appeal of Jehovah's Witness Sergey Gromov against the sentence and upheld it—6 years and 1 month of imprisonment in a penal colony. The believer can appeal this decision to the court of cassation.


In the appeal, the defendant's lawyer emphasized that such a verdict was unconstitutional: "The court of first instance did not protect Gromov from religious discrimination against Jehovah's Witnesses." He also stated that the verdict is contrary to world judicial practice: "It is well known that in Europe there are about 50 independent states that are very close to Russia in their legal culture, in which a total of more than 1,709,000 Jehovah's Witnesses live. But only in the Russian Federation is the practice of the religion of Jehovah's Witnesses recognized as a crime, while criminal prosecution is accompanied by unimaginable terms of imprisonment."


Three other Jehovah's Witnesses from Tatarstan were sentenced to various terms in penal colonies, a total of 13 residents of this region are persecuted for their faith.


Gromov's case in Kazan


Case history


In March 2022, FSB officers detained Sergey and Yelena Gromova from Kazan at Moscow’s Vnukovo airport. As it turned out, on the same day, an FSB investigator opened a criminal case against Sergey, who professes the religion of Jehovah’s Witnesses, for organizing the activities of an extremist organization. Two secret witnesses participated in the case, one of whom was an FSB officer. The believer was arrested and placed in a temporary detention facility, and 2 days later in a pre-trial detention center. Searches were carried out in the apartment of the Gromovs and at two other addresses. Later, the man was suspected of violating another article of the Criminal Code—on the financing of extremist activities. In February 2023, the case went to court, and in September of the same year, Gromov was convicted: 6 years and 1 month in a penal colony. In January 2024, the appeal upheld this decision.


Criminal case


Region:

Tatarstan

Locality:

Kazan

Suspected of:

According to the investigation, he continued the activities of the liquidated religious organization by holding religious meetings at his place of residence

Court case number:

12207920001000008

Initiated:

March 15, 2022

Current case stage:

The verdict entered into force

Investigating:

Branch of the Federal Security Service of Russia in the Republic of Tatarstan

Articles of Criminal Code of Russian Federation:

282.2 (1), 282.3 (1)

Court case number:

1-157/2023

Court of First Instance:

Moskovsky District Court of Kazan

 Judge of the Court of First Instance:

 Alsou Gumirova


In the photo: Sergey Gromov during the appeal hearing via video conferencing, January 31, 2024

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