Viktor Velikov
- Criminal Code
- Article 282.2 part 2, Russian Criminal CodeArticle 282.3 part 1, Russian Criminal Code
- Case category
- Extremism casesCases against Jehovah's Witnesses
- Verdict
- Ban on activity, Imprisonment (general regime)
- Sentence
- 5 years 6 months
- Date of verdict
- 2025-12-18
- Region
- Moscow
- City
- Moscow
- Address for letters
- 123308, г. Москва, 1-й Силикатный проезд, д. 11, к. 1, ФКУ СИЗО-3 ГУФСИН России по г. Москве ("Пресня"), Великов Виктор Анатольевич, 1970 г.р.
Recognition by human rights organisations
- Recognised as unlawfully deprived of liberty for exercising freedom of religionby Memorial: Support for Political Prisoners
This is the assessment of the organisation named above, not ours. FACTUM reports it with attribution and does not make its own.
Case summary
Resident of Moscow. On 10 April 2025, he was placed in custody in a case of financing extremist activities due to his involvement in the activities of the Jehovah's Witnesses community. Representatives of this community are prosecuted under extremist articles solely because of their religious activities — holding meetings and worship services and attracting new supporters.
Then Velikov was also charged under the article on participation in the activities of an extremist organisation.
On 18 December 2025, the court sentenced him to five and a half years in a general regime colony.
Others charged under Article 282.2 part 2, Russian Criminal Code
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Source: this person’s record in the OVD-Info political persecution database
Published under CC BY 3.0. The criteria for treating a person as politically persecuted belong to OVD-Info; FACTUM relays their assessment and makes none of its own.
OVD-Info has been designated an «extremist» organisation in Russia — by decision of the Russian authorities, like other independent human rights and media projects.