Praised Putin and heroized Russian occupiers: SSU exposes UOC-MP cleric in Odesa. PHOTO
The SBU documented anti-Ukrainian activities by the rector of a church in the Odesa diocese of the UOC (MP). The cleric justified Russia's war against Ukraine and incited religious hatred.
This was reported by Censor.NET with reference to the SSU press centre.
According to the investigation, during his sermons and communication with the faithful, the archpriest praised Putin and glorified Russia's occupation groups.
The defendant also tried to justify the war crimes of the Nazis, including the Russian shelling of Ukrainian civilian infrastructure.
Separately, the cleric imposed his own intolerance of representatives of other faiths on his parishioners and incited religious hatred.
The SSU officers documented the crimes of the defendant.
A forensic linguistic examination initiated by the SSU confirmed the facts of the archpriest's information and subversive activities in favour of Russia.
Based on the evidence, SSU investigators served the offender a notice of suspicion under two articles of the Criminal Code of Ukraine:
- ч. 1, Art. 161 (violation of equality of citizens based on their race, nationality, region, religious beliefs and other grounds);
- ч. 1, Art. 436-2 (justification, recognition of the legitimacy, denial of the armed aggression of the Russian Federation against Ukraine, glorification of its participants).
The investigation is ongoing to establish all the circumstances of the crime. The offender faces imprisonment.
