Vicar of Svyatogorsk Lavra left in pre-trial detention until October 13

The hierarch of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church, Metropolitan Arseniy (Yakovenko), vicar of the Holy Assumption Svyatogorsk Lavra, has been kept in a pre-trial detention center until October 13, 2024. The corresponding decision was made on August 15 by the Slavyansk city district court. About it reports the edition “Suspilne.Donbas”.

It is reported that the lawyers of Metropolitan Arseniy asked to change his measure of restraint to house arrest. Nine people’s deputies have prepared an appeal to take the vicar of Sviatogorsk Lavra on bail, these are: Yuriy Boyko, Vitaliy Bort, Victoria Hryb, Artem Dmytruk, Serhiy Dunayev, Serhiy Larin, Pavel Halimon, Yuriy Pavlenko, Artem Kultenko. However, the court did not take into account these circumstances, continuing the bishop’s detention in the pre-trial detention center for another 60 days – until October 13.

“My case is only part of the mood that is now being mused in the Verkhovna Rada on the ban of the UOC. And if I am convicted, it will be such a trump card for the opponents of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church and for the Verkhovna Rada to solve this issue of banning the UOC,” – Metropolitan Arseniy said.

Earlier, the controversial Crimean Tatar blogger and LGBT rights activist Ayder Muzhdabaev called for the exchange of the clergy of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church as prisoners of war to continue. Muzhdabaev believes that the UOC priests are “the best exchange fund”.