OCU cleric reports UOC priest to SBU over religious procession

Roman Hryshchuk. Photo: С4

Roman Hryshchuk, a roaming raider affiliated with the OCU and active in Bukovyna, published a Facebook post in which he labeled a religious procession of UOC parishioners in Ust-Putyla as a “night parade on Victory Day.”

"In the village of Ust-Putyla, a Moscow priest and his parishioners reached a new level of support for Moscow in the Carpathians! They decided to soak themselves in the Russian spirit by staging a parade on May 9! 'The Day of Victory reeks of incense,' as they say..." wrote Hryshchuk.

According to him, the faithful were "shouting Muscovite chants."

"There were no 'grandpas' on sticks, but plenty of Russian chants! So it seems that this parade on 'Victory Day' was an invocation of the 'Russian World' spirit by Hutsuls deceived by a Moscow priest," he continued, condemning the parishioners for bringing children "just to make up numbers."

He tagged the Security Service of Ukraine (SBU), calling on them to "check this priest for contacts with Russian handlers. He's had a few too many incidents tied to what's across the border."

Hryshchuk attached several videos of the procession, led by a priest. In none of them are there any so-called "Muscovite chants." Instead, one can clearly hear the faithful singing a prayer: "Lord Jesus Christ, Son of God, have mercy on us sinners." No political symbols were visible, and there was no basis for associating the procession with Victory Day.

Earlier, UOJ reported that during the night of April 8–9, 2025, Roman Hryshchuk and accomplices – some of whom were found in possession of cold weapons – attempted to seize the Church of St. Nicholas in Verkhni Stanivtsi.

As a reminder, on February 26, 2025, the parishioners of Ust-Putyla voted to remain faithful to the UOC.

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