UGCC Priest and Group of Parishioners from Yevpatoria Detained in Crimea. Update: Priest is released. No details given

Yesterday, September 2, UGCC priest Bohdan Kostetsky from Yevpatoria (Crimea) with a group of parishioners (15 people) went to Yalta and communication with them was lost.

Late in the evening Father Bogdan called another UGCC priest, Father Mykola Hawryluk, and said that they were detained and they are in some basement. His interrogation was to take place at 2:30 a.m.

His wife, who is in Yalta, doesnt know where Fr. Bohdan is.

As Father Mykola told RISU, after the Russian annexation of Crimea, the UGCC priest for some time left the peninsula, but at the end of April Fr. Bohdan returned to his parish. Since then, he always felt that he was being watched. Several times he was summoned to talk to the department of the FSB (Russian Federal Security bureau). Among other things, he was asked about his thoughts about Metropolitan Andrey Sheptytsky.

We do not know the reason of the detention.

Around 11 a.m., RISU was informed that the priest was released. The reason of detention is not given.