A court ordered the police to open a case against a far-right extremist who threatened to harm a lawyer for the Ukrainian Orthodox Church

The Shevchenkivskyi District Court of Kyiv granted the complaint filed by Nikita Chekman, a lawyer for the Ukrainian Orthodox Church, ordering law enforcement agencies to launch a pretrial investigation into the actions of right-wing radical and extremist David Pshenichny, who actively opposes the Ukrainian Orthodox Church. The corresponding decision was issued on September 15, 2026, in Case No. 761/36241/26.

According to Nikita Chekman, a lawyer for the Ukrainian Orthodox Church and Archpriest , the conflict began on August 26, 2026, when the defense counsel filed a report with the Shevchenkivskyi Police Department alleging that David Pshenychnyi had committed a criminal offense under Part 1 of Article 397 of the Criminal Code of Ukraine (interference in the activities of a defense attorney or a person’s representative). Specifically, Pshenychnyi threatened the UOC’s attorneys with reprisals for their human rights advocacy.

Initially, the police did not enter the information into the Unified Register of Pre-trial Investigations (URPI), which forced the defense to challenge the law enforcement agencies’ inaction in court. According to the court’s ruling, the police are required to enter the information into the URI and launch a full-scale investigation into the incident.

The attorney emphasized that pressure on members of the legal profession is unacceptable in a state governed by the rule of law and expressed hope for objectivity and fairness in the upcoming investigation.

As a reminder, earlier, Archpriest Nikita Chekman, a lawyer for the Ukrainian Orthodox Church (UOC), issued a statement regarding systematic provocations and direct threats of physical violence directed against those defending the interests of the UOC. The lawyers have faced organized aggression from a group of individuals seeking to discredit the legal activities of the Church’s defenders.