Metropolitan Arseniy released from SIZO to be immediately taken by SBU

Metropolitan Arseniy. Photo: svlavra.church.ua

Metropolitan Arseniy of Sviatohirsk, who was released from the pretrial detention center in Dnipro on bail, was immediately detained by officers of the Security Service of Ukraine (SBU). According to UOJ sources, on October 28, 2025, around noon, the hierarch left the detention facility after the bail of 1,514,000 UAH had been paid.

The release was arranged by his lawyers due to the hierarch’s serious health condition – Metropolitan Arseniy urgently needed heart surgery and was supposed to be taken to the hospital.

However, immediately upon his release, Vladyka Arseniy was met by representatives of the SBU. According to available information, security officers presented the bishop with charges that had been formally issued three weeks earlier and took him to the SBU building, where he is still being held. The officers reportedly explained their actions as necessary to “establish all the circumstances of the case.”

According to UOJ sources, SBU personnel stated that they could detain the hierarch for up to 72 hours. As of now, there have been no official comments from law enforcement agencies.

As reported earlier by the UOJ, on September 30, due to the worsening health of the abbot of the Holy Dormition Sviatohirsk Lavra, Metropolitan Arseniy of Sviatohirsk, he was taken to a hospital in Dnipro for an examination of his heart and blood vessels, as well as consultation with a cardiologist and arrhythmologist. The arrhythmologist confirmed the urgent need for heart surgery, and doctors also recommended a comprehensive medical evaluation by other specialists.

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