OCU and SBU launch intimidation campaign against UOC community in Brovary
Law enforcement officers have opened a criminal case against the rector of St. Demetrius Church and are demanding that ownership of the shrine be handed over to representatives of the OCU.
The Dozor Telegram channel reports that pressure against the St. Demetrius Parish of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church in Brovary is continuing. OCU raiders and law enforcement officers are allegedly trying to seize the church, while the parish and its clergy remain under constant pressure for defending their rights.
In April 2024, a group of raiders held a meeting and carried out an unlawful re-registration of the shrine under the OCU. The religious community learned that the documents were being falsified and decided to defend the church by establishing a charitable foundation. The faithful transferred ownership of the church building to the foundation, leaving the raiders empty-handed.
Immediately afterward, the Security Service of Ukraine began pressuring the priest and the parishioners. According to the report, security officers intimidated people by fabricating criminal cases. The rector of the church, Archpriest Oleksandr Stepaniuk, refused to surrender ownership of the church. In response, a criminal case was opened against him on charges of “misappropriation, embezzlement of property, or seizure of property through abuse of office.”
Court proceedings are now ongoing, during which OCU representatives are attempting to take the church and intimidate its parishioners. Those involved are demanding that the priest transfer the church into the ownership of their legal entity. They have reportedly promised to have the fabricated case dropped in court in exchange for the transfer of the building, but the majority of parishioners refuse to hand over their shrine.
Earlier, the UOJ reported that security officers in Brovary were intimidating the rector and faithful of the St. Demetrius Parish.
