SBU detains UOC priest in Odesa

The SBU detained a UOC priest. Photo: SBU Facebook page

On May 27, 2026, the Security Service of Ukraine detained a priest of one of the churches of the UOC’s Odesa Eparchy, the SBU reported on its Facebook page. The agency claimed that the priest was an agent of Russian military intelligence.

The SBU said the cleric allegedly helped coordinate the shelling of Odesa with two Iskander-M ballistic missiles. According to the security service, the first missile struck a residential area, while the second hit the same location after emergency services had arrived.

The SBU claims the priest passed information and target coordinates, as well as data on the location of air defense forces and an electrical substation, to a chatbot run by Sergey Lebedev, known by the alias “Lokhmaty.” A smartphone allegedly used to communicate with intelligence services was seized from the detainee.

SBU investigators notified the priest that he is suspected of high treason under Part 2 of Article 111 of Ukraine’s Criminal Code. He faces life imprisonment.

As reported earlier by the UOJ, the SBU detained a UOC cleric for allegedly “waiting for the full occupation of Ukraine.” Such SBU reports continue to shape an atmosphere of suspicion around information security in church circles, especially under wartime conditions.

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