MP: Drugs found in my daughter's blood due to her activity near Lavra

The pedestrian crossing where Yaryna Aryeva hit a person. Photo: pravda.com.ua

Volodymyr Aryev, an MP of the Verkhovna Rada from the "European Solidarity" faction, accused the law enforcement officers of falsifying the results of tests that allegedly a drug substance in his daughter Yaryna's body after she committed a traffic accident. He wrote about it on his Facebook page.

The MP claims that investigators and prosecutors are under the influence of the "Moscow Patriarchate" and are trying to discredit the girl due to her active participation in anti-church actions near the Kyiv Pechersk Lavra. At the same time, Aryev claims that the Office of the President is behind the "falsification" and allegedly wants to punish him for his criticism.

As reported, Yaryna Aryeva, a Kyiv City Council member from the "European Solidarity" party, hit a woman on a pedestrian crossing in the capital city in November 2022. The victim suffered severe injuries, including clavicle and jaw fractures with traumatic tooth extraction, limb fractures, a closed skull-brain injury, and other injuries. On May 23, 2023, it became known that Aryeva is accused of causing the car accident while being under the influence of drugs. The court ordered her to be placed under house arrest from 8 p.m. to 6 a.m.

According to Volodymyr Aryev, the woman his daughter hit "suddenly came onto the road in complete darkness without reflectors on her clothing" during a blackout.

"For half a year, there was no mention of any drugs in the case, and suddenly they appeared. This never happens. So, this is a falsification," the MP writes. "And the fact that Yaryna has been actively participating in actions against Moscow priests near the Lavra in recent weeks has had a cumulative effect – the majority of the capital's law enforcement system are parishioners of the Moscow Patriarchate."

The version presented by Aryev and his daughter was refuted by the Prosecutor's Office. In a comment to pravda.com.ua, Nadiya Maksymets, the spokesperson for the Kyiv City Prosecutor's Office, reported that the pedestrian crossing where the car accident occurred has reflective markings and warning signs, allowing the driver to objectively see the pedestrian and give her the opportunity to cross the road, which she failed to do, causing the victim multiple severe injuries”.

The spokesperson emphasized that immediately after the car accident, Aryeva was taken to the hospital to be examined for alcohol and drug intoxication. The doctor detected visual signs of narcotic intoxication in the MP, such as redness of the sclera, dry mouth, and suspicious behaviour, among others. The clinical picture was documented in the corresponding report.

Aryeva was asked to submit tests for laboratory examination. The container with biological samples was sealed in her presence. The tests revealed traces of cannabinoids in the driver's body and a report was drawn up.

When Aryeva was informed of the test results, she admitted that she had indeed consumed marijuana given to her by a friend. The suspect signed the paper that she had received the medical examination report.

"Thus, yesterday's claims by the suspect "that the post-accident examination found nothing" are completely untrue," said a spokeswoman for the Prosecutor's Office.

She also said that a forensic toxicology examination was carried out to verify the initial laboratory tests, which fully confirmed the conclusion of the medical examination.

Nadiya Maksymets explained that the process of investigation and announcement of suspicion to the MP was delayed by Aryeva herself, who tried to mislead the investigation.

"She claimed that she hit the woman not on the pedestrian crossing but outside it and that some obstacle prevented her from seeing the road," Maksymets said. “These are important circumstances, which had to be checked through investigation. Unfortunately, there were no direct witnesses who could have seen the moment of the collision. After the accident, Aryeva refused to testify, while the victim was in intensive care. In order to verify the driver's version, an auto-technical examination of the mechanism of the collision and an investigative experiment were carried out. Their conclusions completely refuted Aryeva's version. Moreover, it was impossible for the hit-and-run to have taken place under the circumstances she claimed. The hit would have been on the other side of the victim's body".

The Prosecutor-General's Office plans to appeal against the court's decision to impose too lenient a measure of restraint on Aryeva – overnight house arrest.

As earlier reported, in addition to direct participation in rallies near the Kyiv-Pechersk Lavra, Yaryna Aryeva administered groups in social networks where "activists" coordinated anti-UOC activities. Also with her assistance, the Eurosolidarity office in front of the Lavra became the unofficial headquarters of the "activists".

On 18 May 2023, Aryeva took part in a sacrilegious rite to "bury the UOC-MP".

Read also