Cleric of the OCU Who Allowed Demolition of Historic Church in Rivne Region Has Died

The public organization “Ukraina Incognita” has reported the death of an Orthodox Church of Ukraine priest involved in the destruction of an 18th-century church in the village of Zaborol, Rivne region. The news was published on the organization’s Facebook page.

The case concerns a wooden church dedicated to the Conception of St. John the Baptist, built in 1762.

“In late April, we reported on the act of vandalism committed by the residents of Zaborol against their own church. They completely demolished the wooden church, which was already 263 years old. And now, less than two months later, the OCU priest, Mykola Zbytkovskyi, who allowed this vandalism, has died. He was only 42 years old,” the organization’s message reads. It also notes that the cause of death remains unknown.

According to reports from the site, local OCU activists sawed the church apart with chainsaws, then leveled the ground with tractors. Moreover, it is claimed that “fragments of skulls and human bones were seen on the leveled surface.”

It is also worth noting that the Department of Culture and Tourism of the Rivne Regional Administration stated that the local community acted within the law, since the Church of St. John the Baptist (built in 1762) did not have official status as a cultural heritage monument.