Priest from Ukrainian Orthodox Church of Moscow Patriarchate in Luhansk region sentenced to 12 years in prison for assisting the enemy

KYIV. Dec 7 (Interfax-Ukraine) – A priest from Lysychansk, Luhansk region, has been sentenced to twelve years in prison for gathering information on Ukrainian defense positions for the enemy, the Prosecutor General’s Office (PGO) said.

"A priest from the Ukrainian Orthodox Church of Moscow Patriarchate in Luhansk region has been sentenced to twelve years in prison for informing the enemy about Ukrainian defense positions. The prosecutors proved in court that the priest from Lysychansk-based church assisted the Russian armed groups during hostilities against the Ukrainian army," it said on the Telegram channel on Wednesday.

Since the middle of April 2022, the enemy henchman gathered information about the number and deployment of equipment, as well as the Ukrainian Armed Forces’ weapons in Severodonetsk and the neighboring settlements. He sent the information to the aggressor country’s representatives via mobile messengers.

"The enemy used the obtained information to establish the location of targets and attack them," the PGO said.

The "fan of the Russian world" was exposed and detained in late April 2022.

While documenting the crimes, law enforcers found the priest’s phone correspondence with the enemy armed formations.

The Security Service of Ukraine conducted the pre-trial investigation into the case.