Archpriest Mykolai Danylevych handed a suspicion on two Penal Law articles

Archpriest Mykolai Danylevych is handed a suspicion. Photo: SBU

On April 12, Father Mykolai Danylevych was served with suspicion under two articles of the Ukrainian Criminal Code by the Security Service of Ukraine (SBU). According to the SBU press service, these are Part 2 of Article 161 (violation of equality of citizens based on their race, nationality, regional affiliation, religious beliefs, and other grounds) and Part 2 of Article 436-2 (justification, recognition as lawful, denial of armed aggression by the Russian Federation against Ukraine, glorification of its participants).

The SBU statement claims that the UOC cleric justified Russian aggression against Ukraine and incited religious hatred. It is noted that Father Mykolai did this while leading UOC dioceses abroad, under the guise of providing spiritual care to refugees, promoting Russian narratives to them.

Furthermore, the priest is accused of "public calls for cooperation with 'rashists' to jointly 'pray for the health and well-being' of Russian occupiers."

"Thus, the suspect attempted to influence the consciousness of Ukrainians abroad and discredit our country on the international stage. Expert examinations initiated by the Security Service confirmed the facts of his information subversive activities against our state."

As an illustration to their statement, the SBU press service attached photos of identification documents, certificates, and a library card issued in the Russian Federation, but the names and years of issue on all documents are blurred. According to the investigation, these documents may indicate the possible possession of Russian citizenship by the UOC priest.

As reported by the UOJ, on the morning of April 12, the SBU conducted a search at the residence of Father Mykolai Danylevych, Deputy Head of the Department for External Church Relations of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church.

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