Official involved in church seizure in Sutkivtsi arrested for corruption

Palamarchuk's arrest. Photo: National Police Press Service

February 18, 2025 – The State Bureau of Investigations (SBI) has arrested Viktor Palamarchuk, acting head of the Khmelnytskyi District State Administration, on corruption charges, Hromadske reports.

Palamarchuk is accused of accepting bribes in exchange for helping men evade mobilization. He faces up to 10 years in prison.

According to UOJ sources in Khmelnytskyi Oblast, on May 15, 2024, Palamarchuk participated in the forceful seizure of the historic Protection Church in Sutkivtsi. Eyewitnesses claim that he personally broke the locks on the church doors.

Previously, the UOJ reported that the ancient UOC church in Sutkivtsi had been seized, with the doors being forcibly broken open.

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