The Svyatogirsk Holy Dormition Lavra in the Donetsk region reports on its own website on the criminal case in which its superior, Metropolitan Arseniy, has been held in custody since April 2024. Suspilne Donbas and Vilne Radio report that he is accused of disclosing information about Ukraine's Defence Forces.
Suspilne Donbas, citing the monastery's website, reported that on 5 December 2024 the Sloviansk City District Court of the Donetsk Region extended his custody to 2 February 2025, and that on 23 January 2025 the Dnipro Court of Appeal, sitting in Kryvyi Rih, heard the defence's appeals against that ruling and refused to release him.
On 30 January 2025 the Sloviansk City District Court chose the further measure of restraint and extended his custody in the remand prison in Dnipro by another 60 days, to 30 March. Vilne Radio, which read the ruling in the Unified State Register of Court Decisions, writes that the prosecution had asked for the extension while the defence asked for release on bail, on the recognisance of others, or for house arrest, and that this was the sixth extension. The Lavra reported that eleven members of parliament from different factions had filed statements offering to stand surety for the superior or asking that bail be set.
On 18 February 2025, the monastery's press service reported, the same court finished considering the defence's motion that the hearings be broadcast on the YouTube channel and portal of the Judiciary of Ukraine, and refused it, so there will be no online broadcasts. On 25 February the Dnipro Court of Appeal in Kryvyi Rih opened its hearing of the appeals against the ruling of 30 January but did not finish it, for technical reasons; the session set for 26 February did not take place for the same reasons, and the hearing was moved to 3 March 2025.
Sources: Suspilne Donbas, 24 January 2025; Svyatogirsk Holy Dormition Lavra, 31 January 2025; Vilne Radio, 4 February 2025; Svyatogirsk Holy Dormition Lavra, 20 February 2025; the same, 25 February 2025; the same, 27 February 2025.
