Police recovered stolen utensils from the Skete of the Svyatogorskaya Lavra

Law enforcement agencies successfully recovered the stolen bells and church utensils of the Skorbyashchensk skete of the Svyatogorsk Dormition Lavra, which were stolen on the night of January 25, 2026. Thanks to prompt police action, the property was found already on January 27 and transferred to the Lavra on January 30. This is reported by the press service of the monastery.

The incident occurred on the night of January 25, 2026, when unknown persons robbed the hermitage in honor of the icon of the Mother of God “Joy of All Who Sorrow”, located in the village of Bogorodichnoye, Kramatorsk district, Donetsk region. Among the stolen items were bells and other valuable church utensils.

After receiving a report of the robbery, the authorities and police officers immediately arrived at the scene. Thanks to prompt investigative actions, on January 27, law enforcers found a cache of stolen property directly in the village of Bogorodichnoye. As specified by the press service of the Lavra, in the forest area near the temple was found a trailer, carefully hidden under camouflage nets, which contained the stolen relics. The next day, January 28, the police notified the brethren of the Sviatogorsk Lavra about the discovery of the stolen goods.

The official transfer of all the stolen property of the hermitage to the Sviatogorsk monastery took place on January 30, after the completion of all necessary procedural actions. This news was a special spiritual consolation for the sisters of the Skorbyashchensk skete, who since 2022 are forced to live in the Lavra due to the consequences of military operations, as in their native village of Bogorodichnoye there is no housing, water, electricity and communication.

The brethren of the Lavra and the sisters of the hermitage expressed their sincere gratitude to the police officers for their efficiency, professionalism and conscientious fulfillment of their duties, which allowed to return the lost shrines in the shortest possible time.

Recall, earlier we reported that the Office of Khmelnytskyi diocese of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church filed a lawsuit against three deputies of the city and regional councils for misappropriation of vehicles belonging to the diocese. The car in question is a Skoda Octavia, which was stolen during the seizure of the Holy Protection Cathedral of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church in Khmelnytskyi in early April 2023. According to the testimony of the human rights defender of the Khmelnytskyi diocese, the police refused to accept a report on the theft.