1. Arrest of Kapitanchuk, January-March 1980
On 31 January 1980, Victor KAPITANCHUK was fetched from work (he is a chemist working at the Grabar Central Restoration Workshops [1]) to an interrogation at the KGB linked to the case of Yakunin.
Kapitanchuk stated that for religious and moral reasons he could not take part in a criminal case aimed at stopping the religious and public activities of Father Gleb Yakunin. He refused to testify as a witness.
Victor Kapitanchuk (b. 1945)
During their conversation KGB officers Major Yakovlev and Captain Kolpakov let it be understood that if Kapitanchuk did not cease his activities in defence of human rights he would be arrested. They expressed the hope that Kapitanchuk would come to them himself with a confession.
On 17 February a press conference took place at Sakharov’s flat. Kapitanchuk talked about the persecution of Pentecostalists in Zhdanov [Mariupol] (CCE 56.20) and about the arrest of Vladimir Burtsev (CCE 56.11).
*
On 12 March 1980, Kapitanchuk was summoned to an interrogation. There he was arrested, put in the KGB’s Lefortovo Prison, and charged under Article 190-1 (RSFSR Criminal Code). KGB Investigator A.A. Levchenko is conducting Kapitanchuk’s case.
An appeal “In defence of Victor Kapitanchuk” (44 signatures) states:
“On 12 March 1980, continuing its attack on believers in the USSR, the KGB arrested Victor Kapitanchuk, a member of the ‘Christian Committee to Defend Believers’ Rights in the USSR’. His arrest shows with special clarity that the authorities are concerned about the growth of the religious revival in the country. To prevent this growth, the authorities have been arresting the most active believers, the laymen and clergy of various churches.
“All the activities of Victor Kapitanchuk have been aimed at defending the rights of believers in an atheistic country. They may serve as an example of selfless Christian devotion.
“Sacrificing his comfort, energy and health, Kapitanchuk has constantly participated in the work of the Christian Committee, from its very first days until his arrest. Hundreds, maybe even thousands of believers in the USSR have received real help, advice and support from Kapitanchuk.”
On the day of Kapitanchuk’s arrest the “Christian Committee” published the following statement:
“As the Christian Committee announced previously, about 250 letters have been received from Christians of various denominations offering help and expressing a desire to become members of the Committee. Of late the number of such letters has grown considerably.
“In the present situation, a result of total repression directed against both the Christian Committee and all believers in the USSR, and taking into consideration the increased volume of work in defending human rights, the Christian Committee has accepted 10 (ten) new members, without making their names public.
“The activities of the newly enlarged committee will be pursued in accordance with the Constituent Declaration adopted in 1976 [2].
“On behalf and at the behest of the Christian Committee,
“[signed] Father Nikolai Gainov and Vadim Shcheglov.”
*
2. Interrogation of Vadim Shcheglov (April 1980)
On 15 April 1980, KGB officers Yakovlev and Kolpakov interrogated Vadim SHCHEGLOV about the case of Gleb Yakunin.
Shcheglov refused to give evidence, but the interrogation lasted four hours. The next day there was a new interrogation. Shcheglov was asked not only about Yakunin but also about other members of the “Christian Committee”. Many of the questions were about Shcheglov’s own activities.
At the end of the interrogation, he was reminded that Kapitanchuk had ‘been warned’, but had not ceased his activities and been arrested.
Therefore, said the investigators, despite his present refusal to give evidence, they hoped Shcheglov would come back to them in a few days’ time with a full confession.
=========================
NOTES
- Central Restoration Workshops named after artist and conservationist Igor Grabar.
↩︎ - 1976 Constituent Declaration of the Christian Committee to Defend the Rights of Believers in the USSR.
↩︎
============================
A Chronicle of Current Events 