In Kherson, the sanctioned rector of the Holy Assumption Cathedral, Oleksiy, was notified of suspicion of treason and aiding the aggressor state, who blessed the balance sheet for the fake referendum in Russia. This was reported by the press service of the SBU, according to UNN.
The Security Service has collected evidence of high treason on the part of Oleksiy, the former rector of one of the cathedrals of the Kherson Diocese of the UOC (MP), who is hiding in the left bank of the region. After the seizure of the regional center, he supported the Russian invaders and joined the inner circle of the Saldo governor, becoming his confessor,
Details
According to the investigation, the archimandrite regularly invited him to worship in the church, and during his sermons he blessed the illegal referendum of the Russian Federation on the "accession" of Kherson region to the aggressor country.
In addition, the defendant personally appealed to Moscow Patriarch Kirill with a request to include the local cathedral in the parish of the Russian Orthodox Church. In return for the cleric's defection to the occupiers, they gave his cathedral the occupied territories of Ukrtelecom and local businessmen in the central part of Kherson. At the same time, on September 30, 2022, the traitor was invited to St. George's Hall of the Kremlin to participate in the "ceremony of inclusion" of the temporarily occupied regions of Ukraine in the Russian Federation.
During the liberation of Kherson, the cleric fled with the Russian invaders to the left-bank part of the southern region.
Addition
Based on the evidence collected, SBU investigators served him a notice of suspicion in absentia under two articles of the Criminal Code of Ukraine: ч. 2 Art. 111 (high treason); Art. 1 Art. 111-2 (aiding the aggressor state).
Comprehensive measures are underway to bring the offender to justice for the crimes committed.
Recall
Russian Orthodoxy seized churches in the Russian-occupied left bank of Kherson due to the alleged inability of Metropolitan John to manage them. They appointed Bishop Oleksiy as the head of the new diocese.