The court sentenced Metropolitan Theodosius to two months of house arrest

On June 27, 2024, the Prydniprovskyy district court of Cherkasy ruled to increase the restriction of freedom of the hierarch of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church, Metropolitan Theodosiy of Cherkasy and Kanev. The court awarded the hierarch 60 days of round-the-clock house arrest. About it reports the edition “Suspilne.Cherkasy”.

It is reported that in the Pridneprovsky district court the suspect chose a measure of restraint for the fifth suspicion, which he received on June 19, – it is a round-the-clock house arrest until August 17. In Sosnovskyi district court the prosecutor petitioned to strengthen the preventive measure – he asked to apply detention for 60 days with the right to bail. The court rejected the motion.

Metropolitan Theodosius drew the court’s attention to the fact that he has the status of a UN human rights defender and is scheduled to speak in Geneva on July 9, but the court did not take this argument into account.

“On the 9th will be my speech in Geneva on the accusations of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church. A representative of the UN monitoring commission was here at the trial and saw the bloody beating of our believers in the Church of Nativity. Regarding the petition – I am a victim who is being beaten, robbed and raped, and they are also trying to imprison me. I’ve been asked to leave the country several times. And because of the fact that I refused, these criminal cases and suspicions are being raised,” said the bishop.

In turn, the Prosecutor of Cherkasy regional Prosecutor’s office said that Metropolitan Theodosius continued to violate the law, accordingly the measure of restraint for the bishop should be toughened.

“It was found that according to the new suspicion, the crime is qualified as more serious. According to the suspicion, the suspect again incited inter-religious enmity. We also note that the suspect is violating the court’s instructions. Since there are risks, it is necessary to apply detention”, – explained the prosecutor Vadim Kolomiets.

Thus, the court took the side of the prosecution and decided to increase the stay of Metropolitan Theodosius under house arrest – from night to round-the-clock, for 60 days from the date of the decision.

We will remind, earlier we reported that on June 19, 2024 representatives of the Security Service of Ukraine conducted another, already the fourth, search in the dwelling of the hierarch of the UOC Metropolitan of Cherkasy and Kanev Theodosius. According to the bishop, in this way the SBU is trying to induce him to decide to go for an exchange as a “military enemy”.