Czech authorities arrest ROC Metropolitan Hilarion (Alfeyev)

Metropolitan Hilarion (Alfeyev). Photo: DECR MP

On May 24, Czech law enforcement officers arrested Metropolitan Hilarion (Alfeyev) of the Russian Orthodox Church. According to Metropolitan Hilarion’s Telegram channel, he was detained at a gas station allegedly for transporting narcotic substances.

According to the editorial statement, after leaving the Church of Sts. Peter and Paul in Karlovy Vary, police officers stopped the car in which Metropolitan Hilarion and the cameraman accompanying him were traveling. According to the metropolitan and his defense team, the officers gave no clear reason for the stop and immediately began searching the vehicle.

During the search, four small containers containing a white substance were “found” in the trunk.

Metropolitan Hilarion categorically denies any involvement in the illegal possession of prohibited substances and regards the incident as a provocation.

“I have no, and have never had any, connection with the illegal trafficking of narcotic substances. For me, as a clergyman, the very suggestion of such a thing is absolutely false. I insist on a full, independent, and procedurally impeccable investigation into what happened,” Metropolitan Hilarion stated.

Metropolitan Hilarion’s lawyer, Michal Pasovsky, said the circumstances of the car stop and the subsequent search raise serious questions. According to him, two police cars were effectively waiting for the vehicle carrying the metropolitan on the highway. Upon seeing it, they began moving – one in front and the other behind. At the same time, the defense notes, police immediately requested documents not only from the driver but also from Metropolitan Hilarion, although no traffic-related violation had been cited.

“According to the information available to us, no claims of traffic violations were made. It is most likely that the task had been set to search this particular car,” the lawyer said.

Of particular concern to the defense is the fact that, according to the defense team, Metropolitan Hilarion was taken into the gas station shop and was not allowed to observe the search of the vehicle. “There should have been witnesses or video recording. As far as we know at this point, there was neither. Preliminarily, we see clear signs of procedural violations,” Pasovsky stressed.

The defense also points out that personal belongings and bags were effectively not searched, while police attention was immediately focused on the trunk. “The officers went straight to the trunk – as if they knew in advance where to look. If the entire car was being searched, why were the personal belongings and bags not examined? This is one of the key questions for the defense,” the lawyer emphasized.

The defense demands that all video recordings related to the stop of the vehicle, its escort, the search, the seizure of items, and subsequent procedural actions be preserved and provided. The defense also insists on an independent examination of the substance, packaging, and containers, as well as checks for fingerprints, DNA traces, and clarification of who had access to the car before it was stopped.

The bishop’s press service emphasized that the incident had been preceded by a prolonged period of pressure on Metropolitan Hilarion and the Orthodox community in Karlovy Vary. According to the metropolitan, in recent months he had repeatedly received anonymous threats, including threats of physical violence, demanding that he leave the place of his ministry.

According to the defense, these threats did not look like an ordinary personal dispute. They were politically colored: their authors linked Metropolitan Hilarion’s presence in Karlovy Vary to his Russian origin, church affiliation, and service in a Moscow Patriarchate church.

Metropolitan Hilarion served as head of the Moscow Patriarchate’s DECR from 2009 to 2022. In 2022, he was appointed Metropolitan of Budapest and Hungary and relieved of his post as DECR chairman. In 2024, he was released from administration of the eparchy and retired. By decision of the Synod, Metropolitan Hilarion was assigned to ministry in Karlovy Vary.

The current Czech Prime Minister, Andrej Babiš, stated in an official document that he supports imposing sanctions on Metropolitan Hilarion.

Earlier, the UOJ reported that Metropolitan Hilarion (Alfeyev) had been retired.

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