Court sentences participant in attacks on Kyiv-Pechersk Lavra

Yaryna Aryeva near the Kyiv-Pechersk Lavra in 2023. Photo: UOJ

On April 17, 2026, the Obolon District Court of Kyiv found former Kyiv City Council deputy Yaryna Aryeva guilty of causing a traffic accident. In 2023, she actively organized provocations at the walls of the Kyiv Pechersk Lavra. This was reported by the capital's Prosecutor's Office in a comment to media.

The judge sentenced Aryeva to five years imprisonment with a three-year ban on driving vehicles. However, based on Article 75 of the Criminal Code of Ukraine, the convicted person was released from serving the sentence with a three-year probationary period.

The traffic accident occurred in November 2022 in the Obolon district of the capital. Aryeva struck a woman at a pedestrian crossing, causing her fractures of the jaw, collarbone, limbs, and a closed traumatic brain injury.

The prosecution insisted that the perpetrator of the accident was under the influence of drugs. This fact was confirmed by the conclusion of a narcologist and the results of a toxicological examination that revealed cannabis metabolites in her body.

Despite the evidence, the court reclassified Aryeva's actions under an article that excludes the state of intoxication. The Prosecutor's Office demanded that the defendant be sentenced to six and a half years of actual imprisonment and has already announced its intention to appeal the lenient sentence.

It should be recalled that Yaryna Aryeva is known as one of the coordinators of anti-church rallies at the Lavra gates. On May 18, 2023, she participated in a blasphemous "funeral rite for the UOC MP." Also, with her assistance, the "European Solidarity" office opposite the Lavra became an unofficial headquarters for "activists."

Her father, deputy Volodymyr Aryev, was also involved in scandals related to transporting prohibited substances, justifying this as a "journalistic experiment." Regarding the incident with Yaryna, he claimed that investigators and prosecutors were allegedly under the influence of the "Moscow Patriarchate" and therefore trying to "discredit" the girl.

Against the backdrop of the court proceedings, in June 2023, the activist had to resign her deputy mandate.

Earlier, the UOJ reported that the UOC filed a complaint against MP Huz for inciting religious hatred.

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