On October 25, 2021, the Pavlovo City Court of the Nizhny Novgorod Region convicted Brothers Oreshkov, Rakovskiy, and Vavilov. Each brother received a suspended prison sentence of three years.

Aleksey Oreshkov

• Born: 1971 (Pavlovo, Nizhny Novgorod Region)

• Biography: Enjoyed table tennis as a child. Graduated from a music university and majored in wind instruments. Now retired. Has taken care of his elderly mother for several years. Baptized as one of Jehovah’s Witnesses in 2011

Aleksandr Rakovskiy

• Born: 1980 (Pavlovo, Nizhny Novgorod Region)

• Biography: During his youth, learned to play guitar and performed with a musical group. Works as an Internet technology specialist. Married his wife, Tatyana, in 2005. They began studying with Jehovah’s Witnesses after learning about the Bible’s hope for the future. Baptized in 2009. They have a son and daughter

Aleksandr Vavilov

• Born: 1967 (Kropotkin, Krasnodar Region)

• Biography: As a youth, enjoyed running, swimming, skiing, and painting portraits. Served in the army. Trained to become a professional boxer. Eventually, decided not to be associated with a violent sport and became a barber. He and his wife, Yelena, began studying the Bible with Jehovah’s Witnesses. They married in 1994 and got baptized in 1995. They enjoy spending time outdoors

On July 16 and 17, 2019, Federal Security Service (FSB) officers conducted searches of homes of Jehovah’s Witnesses in the Nizhny Novgorod Region. As a result, Aleksey Oreshkov and Aleksandr Vavilov were interrogated and subsequently placed in pretrial detention. Aleksey was detained for 211 days followed by 31 days under house arrest. Aleksandr spent 241 days in detention.

While in detention, Aleksey prayed more often and more intensely than ever before. Each day as he awoke, he prayed to have the proper view of the day’s challenges and to remain loyal and to stay spiritually minded. Additionally, he says: “At the end of the day, my prayers were longer and deeper, and I tried to mention all the brothers by name. I prayed for the detention center staff, my cellmates, the investigator, my family, the congregation, and the organization.”

Aleksandr Vavilov says: “Jehovah has become so close to me. I feel that he is not only taking me and leading me by the hand but also carrying me in his hands like a shepherd carries a little sheep. His care has become more abundantly clear at every turn.”

On September 21, 2020, Aleksandr Rakovskiy was also charged and added to Brother Oreshkov and Brother Vavilov’s case. All three brothers are being accused of, among other things, participating in religious meetings of Jehovah’s Witnesses. They are under travel restrictions.

Aleksandr Rakovskiy has found that meditating on Bible prophecies, especially those about the king of the north, helps him to endure. He relates: “It helps me to focus less on distressing thoughts and more on prophecies regarding persecution and their fulfillment. It also helps me to put more focus on Jehovah’s promise to support us under such conditions.”

We are confident that these three brothers will continue to maintain a positive attitude as their strong faith helps them to endure this trial.—Philippians 1:29.