Kuban Jehovah's Witness* sentenced to colony term

The Abinsk City Court has found Valery Bailo, a Jehovah's Witness*, guilty of taking part in the activities of an extremist association due to discussion of the Bible and sentenced him to 2,5 years of freedom deprivation.

The man refused to plead guilty, the human rights project "OVD-Info"** has informed.

The “Caucasian Knot” has reported that on April 10, 2024, it became known that law enforcers had conducted a search of the home of Valery Bailo, 66, a Jehovah's Witness* from the Krasnodar Territory (also known as Kuban by the name of the main river), after which he was taken into custody. The human rights project "Support for Political Prisoners. Memorial" declared him to be a political prisoner. This May, his defence stated that Bailo needed urgent dental treatment due to acute pain and was suffering from a chronic illness and the effects of a joint trauma.

*396 Russian organizations of Jehovah's Witnesses are recognized as extremist, and their activities in Russia are banned by court's decision.

**Included by the Russian Ministry of Justice (MoJ) into the register of foreign agents.