Russian court orders deportation of American pastor

A court in Russia’s Far East Kamchatka Peninsula has ordered the deportation of American pastor Paul Guione after he was recorded leading a prayer for U.S. President Donald Trump, News.Az reports, citing The Moscow Times.

Local law enforcement authorities accused Guione of conducting unlawful missionary activities during a church gathering held on May 23 in Petropavlovsk-Kamchatsky, the regional capital. On May 30, he was fined 30,000 rubles ($400) and ordered to be deported.

Guione’s defense attorney argued that the deportation order was an excessive punishment, noting that the pastor had sufficient financial resources to leave Russia at his own expense and had already purchased a ticket to depart the country on June 4.

Despite the defense's arguments, the court ruled that Guione should remain in a detention center for foreign nationals awaiting deportation until Aug. 27.

In a press release, the Petropavlovsk-Kamchatsky City Court stated that Guione “conducted religious talks, specifically giving a lecture on Jesus Christ, raising the topic of the importance of religion, teachings of the faith and the need to pray, including for the President of the United States.”

Guione, a father of eight, five of whom are Russian citizens, denied in court that he had committed any offense. He has reportedly visited Kamchatka nearly 60 times over the past three decades.

According to a court statement, the prayer session during which Guione called for churchgoers to pray for Trump was secretly recorded by an unidentified witness in the case against him, and the audio recording was submitted as evidence.

On June 8, the Petropavlovsk-Kamchatsky City Court threw out the initial May 30 order to deport Guione due to procedural errors before reinstating it on June 12.

On Thursday, the court sent the case to a higher appellate judge after Guione’s defense team submitted its final appeal.

News.Az 

By Nijat Babayev