Provocations took place during searches on the territory of the Pochaiv Lavra in Ternopil region, with a group of minors obstructing the investigators’ work.
This was reported on Facebook by Vasyl Ilchyshyn, Director of the Kremenets-Pochaiv State Historical and Architectural Reserve, Ukrinform reports.
“The investigators’ attempts to peacefully and lawfully carry out investigative actions at the Pochaiv Holy Dormition Lavra, in the presence of lawyers, ended in a provocation by the religious organization. Under the clear supervision of members of the Lavra’s brotherhood, minors were brought to the site of the search. They acted aggressively and even laid hands on both investigators and police officers,” the post reads.
Ilchyshyn told Ukrinform that he was involved in the investigative actions as the head of the state reserve, which manages six heritage sites located on the Lavra’s grounds. Searches were planned in some of these areas. His task was to ensure that no authentic elements of the monuments were damaged during the process.
“When the investigative team inspected the area, they found that the doors to the premises which they were to examine were locked, although they had been open the day before. In such cases, law enforcement officers have the right to open them using special tools, with assistance from the State Emergency Service. The doors to an auxiliary building near a historical monument were opened by force — and that’s when the provocations began,” Ilchyshyn said.
According to him, a group of minors appeared, behaving aggressively and preventing law enforcement from doing their job. The Lavra’s bells began to ring, and followers of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church of the Moscow Patriarchate (UOC-MP) gathered at the scene.
“It was obvious that this was a pre-planned action — there was a leader coordinating their actions. They started pushing the investigator, grabbed his folder, and tried to take away the tools the investigative team was using. Then they opened the gates, and a group of elderly women rushed into the Lavra’s territory, sprinkling holy water on the officers while shouting curses and prayers — not only in Ukrainian,” Ilchyshyn recounted.
According to him, the investigative actions were postponed to another day. Ukrinform has requested comments from the regional police to learn how they assess the incident.
Earlier, Ukrinform reported that searches are underway at the Pochaiv Lavra as part of criminal proceedings under Part 5, Article 190 of the Criminal Code of Ukraine (fraud committed on a particularly large scale or by an organized group). Investigators are seizing documents on the Lavra’s premises.
Photo: Vasyl Ilchyshyn / Facebook