Potiyivka. OCU Bishop Ordered the Fence Broken and the UOC Church Seized

Church of the Intercession of the Most Holy Theotokos (UOC)

Address: Zhytomyr Oblast, village of Potiyevka, Tsentralna St.

The UOC Intercession church was seized by a criminal group of the OCU, led by OCU Archbishop of Zhytomyr Vasyl (Volodymyr) Shlapak.

Shlapak personally gave the order to break the fence and "show no mercy to UOC believers."

On September 13, 2025, a raider seizure of the church took place in the village of Potiyivka, Zhytomyr Oblast.

The process was directed by Vasyl (Volodymyr) Shlapak, OCU Archbishop of Zhytomyr and Polissia.

First, a meeting was held in the center of the village, a significant portion of whose participants, according to local residents, are not residents of Potiyevka — let alone parishioners of the local church. The actual parishioners, who regularly attend services, did not take part in the meeting and stood peacefully near the church to prevent bloodshed.

The meeting was organized by a citizen, Mariia Surzhyk, who does not reside in the village. She publicly stated that the church would not be seized.

However, after the vote, Shlapak called on those present to march to the church. Upon approaching the locked church gates, he ordered the fence pickets to be broken (this is visible on video). After men with cigarettes in their teeth made the necessary opening, Shlapak was the first to crawl through the hole. The "priests" and the rest of the activists followed.

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At the church doors, it was Vasyl Shlapak himself who ordered a crowbar to be found and the locks forced open. Despite wanting to enter the church, people were reluctant to do so by such violent means. Nevertheless, Shlapak continually incited them, saying: what are you afraid of, take the crowbar and break it. Direct quote: "They don't deserve any mercy!"

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As a result of these actions, the locks on the church building were forced open and the people entered the church. These actions were not stopped even though the church's parishioners — among them elderly people, young mothers with children, and active-duty military personnel who had come home on leave — were imploring them not to break into the shrine.

A criminal investigation unit was subsequently called to document what had taken place.

Local residents and parishioners of the church testified that a significant portion of those who "raided the church" are not residents of Potiyevka at all.

When Vasyl Shlapak was "triumphantly" leaving the church grounds, members of the Pokrova community asked him: "We trusted you when you said you would not seize the church! Is this what you call the rule of law?!" Shlapak replied: "Yes, this is the rule of law!"

The "meeting" had resolved only to carry out the legal registration of a religious community — not to seize the church. Nevertheless, Shlapak used his authority to persuade the residents to proceed with the seizure. The parishioners intend to file a collective complaint regarding the commission by Vasyl Shlapak of criminal offenses under Article 178 of the Criminal Code of Ukraine, "Destruction of religious buildings or houses of worship"; Article 179 of the Criminal Code of Ukraine, "Unlawful seizure, desecration, or destruction of religious shrines"; and Article 180 of the Criminal Code of Ukraine, "Obstruction of the performance of religious rites"; as well as under Articles 342 and 356 of the Criminal Code of Ukraine.

(Source: UOJ)