Law enforcers recently searched the home of the head of the Rovenky Diocese of the UOC, Archbishop Arkadiy (Taranov), in a case of collaboration, LB.ua has learned from its own sources.
The search was conducted at the place of registration of the archbishop in Odesa. Law enforcers found anti-Ukrainian literature "with signs of inciting religious hatred" and seized it for examination.
LB.ua has learned, the archbishop of Rovenky is about to be served with a notice of suspicion under Part 1, Part 6 of Article 111-1 (collaboration). He is accused of aiding and abetting Russia and supporting the decisions made by the occupying administration in the occupied territory of Luhansk Region.
In May 2022, the Rovenky Diocese split from the UOC, stating that it remained under the omophorion of Moscow Patriarch Kirill. Arkadiy Taranov, who heads the diocese, fled to Russia. The National Security and Defence Council imposed sanctions against the Rovenky archbishop, and in early January of this year, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy suspended Taranov's citizenship.