Detention: On August 11, 2021, FSB officers detained Serhiy Oleksandrovych Lyulin as part of a criminal case against Jehovah's Witnesses. After a search, he was taken to Simferopol, where he was held in a pre-trial detention centre. According to human rights defenders, during transportation, he was kept in a minibus for over 16 hours, handcuffed to the handrails, with his legs taped. Russian authorities charged him under Part 1 of Article 282.2 of the Russian Criminal Code (“organizing the activities of an extremist organization”), claiming he organized religious gatherings of Jehovah's Witnesses. Human rights defenders emphasize that the persecution is solely related to peaceful religious practice.

Sentence: On February 27, 2023, the Russia-controlled Yalta City Court found Serhiy Lyulin guilty and sentenced him to 6 years in a general regime colony. After the verdict was announced, he was taken into custody in the courtroom. On March 22, 2024, the Russia-controlled Supreme Court of Crimea overturned the sentence and sent the case for a retrial. Following this, Serhiy Lyulin was released from custody.

Serhiy Oleksandrovych Lyulin was born on September 24, 1984, in Yalta, where he lived until the start of the criminal prosecution. His parents are retirees, and his older brother died in 2013. From childhood, he was interested in the Bible and later became a believer in the Jehovah's Witnesses religious organization. Before the criminal case, he lived in Yalta with his family.

The criminal proceedings against Serhiy Lyulin were initiated on March 4, 2021. Taras Kuzio, Darya Kuzio, and Petro Zhiltsov were also involved in the case. The investigation claimed they organized religious meetings where they read and discussed the Bible. Human rights organizations emphasized that these actions are an exercise of the right to freedom of religion and do not constitute extremist activity.

After his detention, Serhiy Lyulin spent over six months in a pre-trial detention centre and then over four months under house arrest. While in detention, he contracted COVID-19. In July 2022, the house arrest was lifted, but the criminal prosecution continued.

On February 27, 2023, the Yalta City Court sentenced Serhiy Lyulin to six years of imprisonment. On March 22, 2024, the appellate court overturned the sentence and sent the case for a retrial, after which he was released from custody. The new trial began in 2025 and is ongoing.

As of July 26, 2026, the case is under retrial in the court of first instance, and he remains free under certain restrictions.

Information used from open sources: Association of Relatives of Kremlin Political Prisoners, Project “Support for Political Prisoners. Memorial”, Jehovah’s Witnesses in Russia, USCIRF, Crimean Human Rights Group.

Photo: Association of Relatives of Kremlin Political Prisoners.

Date updated: 26.07.2026.