Martyr John was born in 1884 in the village of Kupelitsy, Vereysk district of Moscow province. He worked as a psalmist in the Pokrovsky church. In 1918, he was detained but released, as he did not participate in the peasant uprising. On January 7, 1930, he was arrested again for not denouncing deacon Nikolai Bogaev, who was accused of counter-revolutionary activity. John admitted his guilt in not reporting. On March 3, 1930, he was sentenced to six months of imprisonment. Later, he fell ill. On January 26, 1938, he was arrested on charges of anti-Soviet activity. Witnesses accused him of agitating against the authorities. On February 2, 1938, the NKVD troika sentenced him to execution. He was shot on February 17, 1938, and buried in an unmarked grave at the Butovo firing range near Moscow.
