Prosecutions of registered religious organisations for failing to give their full official name on buildings, printed literature or online appear to be one of several means for state authorities to exert pressure on particular religious communities. In Bryansk, officials targeted League of Salvation Pentecostal church, "one of the region's most socially active churches", lawyer Sergey Chugunov wrote. As well as a fine under Administrative Code Article 5.26, Part 3, the church has been inspected and searched several times, and a criminal case has been launched.

Bryansk Region Prosecutor's Office did not reply to Forum 18's questions as to why the League of Salvation had been prosecuted and convicted for the absence of a sign at the premises of another religious association, and what other administrative or criminal charges prosecutors may have brought against it, its clergy, and any associated organisations (see below).

The Judge at Soviet District Magistrate's Court No. 12 who fined the Church did respond but did not answer the question (see below).

In July 2025, Federal Security Service (FSB) personnel conducted an unannounced raid on an associated "Love" Support Centre for People in Difficult Life Situations to investigate "the possible activities of an illegal religious organisation". This organisation provides accommodation and social and medical care to homeless and disabled people. The local court dismissed two administrative cases against a Support Centre employee. The FSB has launched a criminal case, but it has not reached court (see below).

"The organisation's activities were essentially paralysed. People were left homeless on the streets. Some were taken in by believers," the Moscow lawyer Anatoly Pchelintsev wrote (see below).

In November 2025, security personnel had raided an inter-faith prayer meal organised by Bryansk's Pentecostal Churches even before it had begun. "Four plainclothes officers entered the hall, accompanied by four soldiers in body armour and helmets, holding machine guns," the lawyer Pchelintsev noted. The event went ahead after officers had questioned about ten participants (see below).

Also targeted was the Evangelical Church of the Holy Trinity in the Moscow Region town of Balashikha. As well as a case under Administrative Code Article 5.26, Part 3 (which a court returned to prosecutors), the church faced inspections from numerous state agencies and a fine for allegedly failing to appear at a pre-arranged meeting. "The prosecutor's office is turning into some kind of punitive body, not at all a supervisory or law enforcement agency," Pastor Roman Zhukov complained. "Without any investigation, they're already presuming us guilty" (see below).

Holy Trinity Church is linked with Pastor Nikolay Romanyuk, who is serving a four-year jail term for a sermon calling on fellow believers not to go to fight in Ukraine (see below).

Neither the Moscow Region Prosecutor's Office nor the Moscow Region branch of the Interior Ministry responded to Forum 18's questions about the grounds on which officials had conducted the inspection of Holy Trinity Church, and what charges had been brought against it as a consequence (see below).

Administrative Code Article 5.26, Part 3 punishes "Implementation of activities by a religious organisation without indicating its official full name, including the issuing or distribution, within the framework of missionary activity, of literature and printed, audio, and video material without a label bearing this name, or with an incomplete or deliberately false label" with fines or a warning. Judges can also order religious literature confiscated or destroyed.

According to the limited available court records, seen by Forum 18, 52 cases are known to have reached court between the beginning of January 2025 and the end of April 2026. These involved 43 registered religious organisations and 9 individuals. Most resulted in convictions and fines.

One element of pressure from state authorities and investigative agencies

Administrative Code Article 5.26, Part 3, which came into force in July 2016, punishes "Implementation of activities by a religious organisation without indicating its official full name, including the issuing or distribution, within the framework of missionary activity, of literature and printed, audio, and video material without a label bearing this name, or with an incomplete or deliberately false label".

A religious organisation's official full name must indicate its religious affiliation and its organisational and legal form ("Centralised Religious Organisation", "Local Religious Organisation", etc.). It therefore tends to be long and complicated, but use of an abbreviated form may incur prosecution.

The Administrative Code specifies that cases under Article 5.26 can be brought by the police, Prosecutor's Offices, or local Justice Departments.

Many prosecutions under Administrative Code Article 5.26, Part 3 take place in isolation (or in conjunction with prosecution under Article 5.26, Part 4). Such prosecutions usually come after the discovery of unlabelled literature during routine prosecutor's office inspections.

Other prosecutions appear to be one of several means for state authorities to exert pressure on particular religious communities.

Balashikha: "People in masks" inspect Holy Trinity Church

On Sunday 8 February, "people in masks" turned up at the Evangelical Church of the Holy Trinity in the Moscow Region town of Balashikha, apparently for an unannounced (rather than scheduled) inspection, the Church's Pastor Roman Zhukov wrote that day on his Telegram channel.

A senior pastor linked to the church, Nikolay Romanyuk, is currently serving a four-year prison sentence under Criminal Code Article 280.4 ("Public calls to implement activities directed against the security of the Russian Federation, or to obstruct the exercise by government bodies and their officials of their powers to ensure the security of the Russian Federation"). He was jailed for a sermon he gave at Holy Trinity in which he called on fellow believers not to go to fight in Ukraine.

"Friends, a large-scale inspection of our church has begun: the prosecutor's office, the Interior Ministry, the Federal Security Service, the Emergencies Ministry, Rospotrebnadzor, and others", Pastor Zhukov wrote on 8 February. "The inspection isn't over yet, but it looks like there's a lot of questions, and of course, there are familiar faces."

The officials arrived at the end of Sunday morning worship on 8 February, the pastor continued. "Everything was polite and proper. They showed the documents authorising the inspection. They didn't interfere with the service. They allowed us to finish and asked us to warn people about the need to show their documents upon exiting. Nobody could leave the building without showing their documents."

Balashikha: "Without any investigation, they're already presuming us guilty"

Prosecutors have accused Holy Trinity Church of several violations. "The assistant prosecutor, apparently out of spite, decided to add a fourth to the three administrative violations – for the late submission of documents. This was despite a verbal agreement with the lawyer to reschedule the time for submitting the documents," Pastor Roman Zhukov noted on 18 February.

"The prosecutor's office is turning into some kind of punitive body, not at all a supervisory or law enforcement agency," Pastor Zhukov added. "Without any investigation, they're already presuming us guilty."

On 2 March, a case against Holy Trinity Church under Administrative Code Article 5.26, Part 3 ("Implementation of activities by a religious organisation without indicating its official full name, including the issuing or distribution, within the framework of missionary activity, of literature and printed, audio, and video material without a label bearing this name, or with an incomplete or deliberately false label") reached Balashikha District Magistrate's Court No. 5. The judge sent it back to prosecutors.

It is unclear on what grounds prosecutors initiated the case or why the judge decided not to consider it. According to Balashikha City Court's website, an appeal was lodged on 14 May, apparently by the prosecution. No hearings have yet been listed.

On 5 March, the church received a "notice of elimination of violations of land use legislation", according to Pastor Zhukov.

"A large-scale investigation of our organisation is currently underway", Pastor Zhukov wrote on 13 April. That day, the church received a 50,000 Rouble fine under Administrative Code Article 17.7 ("Failure to comply with the legal demands of a prosecutor, investigator, investigative officer, or official conducting proceedings in a case of an administrative offence"), because representatives had supposedly failed to attend the prosecutor's office on a particular day to present documents.

This was despite the fact that Pastor Zhukov had called ahead to arrange another appointment because the church's lawyer was working on a different case.

"On Monday, we brought all the documents and explanations we were required to provide. But the prosecutor was interested in documents we couldn't provide. And right in front of us, he issued us Article 17.7! For not showing up on Friday," Pastor Zhukov wrote.

"We had seemingly ironclad evidence: a certificate from the [pre-retrial detention centre] indicating that the lawyer was working there that day, a transcript of the conversation with the prosecutor's office employee in which we had agreed to rearrange the meeting. But when did that ever matter? The court was adamant, promoting the cult of prosecutorial infallibility - how could it be otherwise?"

"It's not the amount that's saddening, although it's quite significant; it's the feeling of powerlessness," Pastor Zhukov added.

Forum 18 wrote to the Moscow Region Prosecutor's Office and the Moscow Region branch of the Interior Ministry on 8 June, asking:
- on what grounds officials had conducted the inspection of Holy Trinity Church;
- and what charges had been brought against it as a consequence.
Forum 18 had received no response from either by the end of the working day in Moscow of 11 June.

Bryansk: Officials "decided to wipe out one of the region's most socially active churches"

In Bryansk, a city close to the borders with Belarus and Ukraine, "it seems that law enforcement has decided to wipe out one of the region's most socially active churches", lawyer Sergey Chugunov wrote on his Telegram channel on 30 April. He noted that officials have conducted "several inspections" of the League of Salvation Pentecostal church, and that prosecutors have opened a criminal case, "but they don't seem to be able to 'investigate' it".

"Instead, they've conducted searches on this very pretext [i.e. the criminal investigation], confiscating a ton of documents, phones, and other things," Chugunov continued. "There's nothing illegal about the church's activities. But a career doesn't build itself, after all. So, they need to get creative [and] they have at least come up with an administrative charge [under Article 5.26, Part 3]."

On 30 April, Bryansk's Soviet District Magistrate's Court No. 12 fined the Centralised Religious Organisation of Christians of Evangelical Faith (Pentecostals) "League of Salvation" 30,000 Roubles, because an associated unregistered religious group (known as "Creators of History" [Tvortsy istorii]) had carried out its activities without displaying the centralised organisation's official full name at the premises in which the group worships in a house of culture.

A fine of 30,000 Roubles is equivalent of about 10 days' average wage for an individual.

According to the prosecutor's office decree initiating the Administrative Code Article 5.26, Part 3 prosecution, dated 9 April and seen by Forum 18, prosecutors carried out their inspection based on information from the Federal Security Service (FSB). The decree states that the "Creators of History" religious group is "included in the structure [vklyuchena v sostav]" of the centralised organisation League of Salvation" – "that is, members of the group are de facto members of the religious organisation".

The group held a Sunday worship service on 1 February, "with the performance of religious songs, the reading of prayers and sermons", access to which was open to all. There was no sign with the League of Salvation's official full name on the facade of the house of culture or at the entrance to the premises used for worship, "thus, members of [League of Salvation] de facto carried out religious activity without displaying information about its full name".

"At the court hearing, we spent a long time explaining the basics of religious association legislation, how they all operate independently and are not responsible for one another", Sergey Chugunov wrote on Telegram. "And we had reason to believe the court heard us and doubted the validity of the charges. But the train can't derail. The verdict is guilty."

Forum 18 wrote to Bryansk Region Prosecutor's Office and Soviet District Magistrate's Court No. 12 on 26 May to ask why the League of Salvation had been prosecuted and convicted for the absence of a sign at the premises of another religious association.

Judge Yekaterina Samotesova responded on 28 May, refusing to answer the question on the grounds that Forum 18 is "not a party to proceedings in the administrative case".

"If a request for information raises a question about the interpretation of a legal provision, clarification of its application, the development of a legal position, or the performance of other analytical work not directly related to protecting the rights of the information user who sent the request, the information will not be provided," the judge wrote. She directed Forum 18 to publicly available information on the magistrate's court website.

Forum 18 wrote again to Bryansk Region Prosecutor's Office on 9 June, seeking to clarify what other administrative or criminal charges prosecutors may have brought against the League of Salvation, its clergy, and any associated organisations.

Forum 18 had received no response from the Prosecutor's Office to either enquiry by the end of the working day in Bryansk of 11 June.

Bryansk: 2025 raid on rehabilitation centre

The pastor of League of Salvation, Liliya Khrenova, is also the pastor of the Local Religious Organisation of Christians of Evangelical Faith (Pentecostals) of Bryansk "Spiritual and Cultural Centre 'Without Walls'", as well as the official representative in Bryansk Region of Bishop Sergey Ryakhovsky, head of the Russian Pentecostal Union.

"Without Walls" was listed as a founder organisation of League of Salvation until 2021 (alongside another local Pentecostal religious organisation in Moscow and two other legal entities). Neither Pastor Khrenova nor her church "Without Walls" has appeared in court on any recent charges, according to court records.

In 2015, according to tax records, Pastor Khrenova also founded the Autonomous Non-Profit Organisation "Love" Support Centre for People in Difficult Life Situations. This organisation provides accommodation and social and medical care to homeless and disabled people, in Navlya District, some 60km south of Bryansk. It also cooperates with a drug treatment centre to provide support for those with addiction problems. Khrenova remained director of the Support Centre until November 2025.

On 27 July 2025, Federal Security Service (FSB) personnel arrived unannounced at the Support Centre to investigate "the possible activities of an illegal religious organisation", according to a court document seen by Forum 18. After establishing "that citizens were present in the households in the specified territory, and suspicions arose that they were being kept in violation of various regulations", the FSB notified the district prosecutor's office of "a possible violation of citizens' rights".

The FSB officers halted their search upon the arrival of officials from the prosecutor's office, Rospotrebnadzor (the consumer rights watchdog), the local hospital, and the district's environmental protection department and fire service. The Support Centre later filed an administrative lawsuit against the prosecutor's office in an attempt to have its inspection ruled unlawful, but Navlya District Court refused to uphold this on 25 December 2025.

The prosecutor's office had received information from the FSB "regarding a possible threat to the life and health of citizens" at the Centre – that about 60 people with disabilities were living there, and that "sanitary, epidemiological, and fire safety regulations do not comply with current legislation, and these individuals are not receiving adequate treatment", a prosecutor's office representative told the court.

Officials took one person into the guardianship of the local administration, "due to the lack of relevant documents regarding his care", and sent other residents to hospital by ambulance.

Prosecutors initiated cases under Administrative Code Article 20.4, Part 1 ("Violation of fire safety requirements") and Article 6.3, Part 1 ("Violation of legislation ensuring the sanitary and epidemiological well-being of the population, expressed in the violation of current sanitary rules and hygienic standards, failure to comply with sanitary and hygienic and anti-epidemic measures") against Sergey Koshelev, head of the Centre's social welfare department, but these cases were later closed. With regard to the Article 20.4 case, the fire service dismissed this on the grounds that only property owners or people officially responsible for fire safety can be liable, which Koshelev was not. Prosecutors challenged this unsuccessfully on 14 November 2025, according to Navlya District Court records.

The FSB opened a case against the Centre under Criminal Code Article 238, Part 2 ("Production, storage or transportation for the purpose of sale, or sale of goods and products, the performance of work or the provision of services that do not meet the requirements for the safety of life or health of consumers, as well as the unlawful issuance or use of an official document certifying the compliance of the said goods, work or services with safety requirements", when "a) committed by a group of persons acting in concert or by an organised group; b) committed against goods, works, or services intended for children under six years of age; or c) negligently resulting in serious bodily harm or death to a person"). This does not appear to have reached court.

The FSB carried out its initial search of the Centre on the grounds of suspecting "the possible commission of a crime under Article 239" ("Creation of a non-profit organisation that infringes on the personality [lichnost] and rights of citizens"), but investigators do not appear to have pursued this.

The "Love" Support Centre, with "concerned citizens and believers of the Evangelical Church", "worked together and achieved much", lawyer Anatoly Pchelintsev wrote on his Telegram channel on 5 December 2025.

"And now, after 25 years of impeccable work, with dozens of commendations, certificates, and diplomas from the governor, the head of the district, various municipal services, the Interior Ministry, and other government agencies, the masked show began on 27 July", Pchelintsev continued.

"The organisation's activities were essentially paralysed. People were left homeless on the streets. Some were taken in by believers. Seven disabled people were taken in by a hospital, but two weeks later, they were discharged with nowhere to go. And they returned to the village."

Pchelintsev added: "Interestingly, the local authorities are siding with these selfless people and are trying to help. Believers are also helping, for they prioritise the commandment 'Love your neighbour as yourself'".

It appears from social media and tax records that the Centre remains operational.

"Someone from local law enforcement asked the most stupid questions: 'Is your denomination funded by America? Are you against the [special military operation]? Are you led by Ryakhovsky, who wants to destroy the constitutional order?'", Bishop Sergey Ryakhovsky told Moskovsky Komsomolets in an interview on 17 March 2026.

"This, forgive me, is insane," Ryakhovsky added. "We have so many fallen heroes. I lead a church with thousands of such parishes. The President of the Russian Federation recently awarded me one of the highest orders – the Order of Honour. Before that, he awarded me the Order of Friendship. Incidentally, I am under European sanctions."

(Ryakhovsky has repeatedly expressed support for Russia's war in Ukraine. Ukraine placed him under sanctions in January 2023, alongside twenty other Russian religious figures, mostly of the Moscow Patriarchate.)

Bryansk: Raid on "prayer meal"

On 19 November 2025, Pentecostal churches in Bryansk organised a "prayer meal" with the theme of "Faith and Creation: Spiritual and Moral Values in Society".

This was the second time a prayer meal – aimed at promoting dialogue between religious organisations, state authorities, and cultural institutions, and replicating similar events held in other regions and at a national level in Moscow – had taken place in Bryansk. They have involved clergy from the Russian Orthodox Church (Moscow Patriarchate), from Baptist, Seventh-day Adventist, and Catholic churches, and from the Muslim community of Bryansk, as well as various local and regional officials. and representatives of secular non-profit organisations.

On this occasion, however, security services raided the event before it began.

"Four plainclothes officers entered the hall, accompanied by four soldiers in body armour and helmets, holding machine guns. One of the plainclothes officers, apparently the senior one, nervously paced the hall, shouting, 'Where is Ryakhovsky?'", lawyer Anatoly Pchelintsev wrote on his Telegram channel on 30 November 2025.

(Bishop Sergey Ryakhovsky had been due to speak at the prayer meal but was unable to attend.)

"They started taking the participants out one by one and questioning them," Ryakhovsky said in his March 2026 interview with Moskovsky Komsomolets. "They asked questions like, 'Aren't you ashamed to be in the company of these rogue Protestants? Don't you know they're Western agents?'"

The officers prevented people from leaving or entering the hall and questioned about ten of the attendees, Pchelintsev noted. "Only 40 minutes later did the event open with the playing of the Russian anthem. However, the mood of the meal's participants was spoiled." (END)

More reports on freedom of thought, conscience and belief in Russia

For background information see Forum 18's Russia religious freedom survey

Forum 18's compilation of Organisation for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE) freedom of religion or belief commitments

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