Two elderly Jehovah's Witnesses, Valeriy Knyazev and Indus Talipov, both 74 years old and from Izhevsk, were sentenced this week to three years in prison in Russia. According to the movement's international spokesman, Jarrod Lopes, their conviction was based on the testimony of an undercover FSB agent using the alias "Lozhkin."
Banned since 2017 and classified as an "extremist organization," Jehovah's Witnesses are subject to ongoing repression in Russia. Nearly 900 members have been prosecuted in total, and 175 are currently imprisoned in Russia and annexed Crimea. The two men in their seventies are believed to be the oldest individuals currently behind bars for their membership in the movement.
According to Lopes, the undercover agent attended religious meetings for months, recorded conversations, and then provided crucial anonymous testimony that led to the conviction. The religious group denounces a network of FSB spies specifically tasked with targeting its members.
The trial takes place in a climate where the Russian Orthodox Church, supported by Vladimir Putin, largely dominates the country's religious life, while religious minorities remain under close surveillance.
