On April 12, 2021, the investigating judge of the Zolochiv District Court overturned the decision of the regional police department in Zolochiv, which closed a criminal case on incitement to hatred against the family of priest Maksym Yoenko. The Union of Orthodox Lawyers (SPA) announced this in Telegram.
The investigating judge considered the complaint of the family of Father Maksym against the decision of the Zolochiv police to close the case on incitement of religious hatred and hatred towards the priest’s family, demands for deprivation of private property and expulsion from Zolochiv.
The court recognized that the pre-trial investigation was carried out incompletely and biasedly, the decision to close the criminal proceedings is unfounded, unmotivated, and the criminal proceedings were closed prematurely.
The cancellation of the illegal decision of the Zolochiv police is a small step towards restoring the religious rights of not only the family of priest Maksym Yoenko, but also the entire religious community of the UOC in Zolochiv, the SPA lawyers noted.