Archpriest of Moscow-linked church sentenced to 4 years in prison for supporting Russia’s war against Ukraine
Pravda Ukraine
The abbot of the Dnipropetrovsk Diocese of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church of the Moscow Patriarchate (UOC-MP), who supported Russia’s aggressive war against Ukraine, has received a real prison term.
Source: Security Service of Ukraine (SSU); Dnipropetrovsk Oblast Prosecutor’s Office; Ukrainska Pravda’s source in law enforcement agencies
Details: Based on the evidence gathered by the special services, the court found the perpetrator guilty of justifying, legitimising, denying the Russian armed aggression against Ukraine and glorifying its participants, and sentenced him to five years in prison.
The court’s verdict became legally binding as prosecutors upheld the verdict on appeal.
A source from the Prosecutor’s Office said the individual in question is Oleksandr Luniehov, the rector of the Church of St John the Merciful parish of the Dnipropetrovsk Diocese of the UOC-MP in the village of Pysmenne in the Vasylkivka district of Dnipropetrovsk Oblast.
Prosecutors in court proved that after the beginning of Russian full-scale aggression, the clergyman repeatedly posted comments under pro-Russian videos on the YouTube platform.
During his sermons, he justified the Russian full-scale invasion and the occupation of parts of Ukraine’s territory. Additionally, during personal conversations with parishioners, the clergyman persuaded them to move to Russia or to temporarily occupied oblasts of Ukraine to assist the Russian occupiers, the SSU stated.
Meanwhile, the archpriest anticipated the occupation of Dnipropetrovsk Oblast, which he repeatedly expressed during conversations with local residents.
SSU employees documented the crimes of the suspect. They detained him in his own residence in September 2022. During the searches, mobile phones used by him to propagate Kremlin propaganda were confiscated.
Expert examinations initiated by the SSU confirmed the facts of the cleric’s subversive activities in favour of the aggressor country.
The Prosecutor’s Office indicated that the convicted did not plead guilty during the court hearing.
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