Yekaterinburg priest, suspected of attempting to rape a girl, went to war in Ukraine

The priest of the Yekaterinburg diocese, Daniil Sidorov, who is suspected of attempting to rape a girl, went to war in Ukraine. Metropolitan of Yekaterinburg and Verkhoturye Evgeniy reported this in his telegram channel.

“Priest Daniil Sidorov, of course, will never again be able to serve as a priest, but this tragically damaged page of his life is not the last. He was able to convincingly and sincerely ask - and received forgiveness from the people offended by him,” the Metropolitan wrote.

According to him, Sidorov has already begun “serving the Motherland and its defense” in the role of an ordinary air assault platoon. The Metropolitan expressed the hope that the priest “will not sit back at headquarters, but on the battlefield will bear the fruits of repentance through dedication and military labor.”

“In accordance with the order determined by the President, and at the behest of his conscience, he left for his place of military service. And in my prayers I commend him into the hands of the Merciful Lord,” added Evgeniy.

A criminal case was opened against Sidorov for attempted sexual assault (part 3 of article 30, part 1 of article 132 of the Criminal Code). According to investigators, on November 10, the 26-year-old priest chased the girl as she walked home. At the entrance, a man did not allow the victim to enter the house, threw her to the ground and masturbated - this was caught on the intercom camera, the recording was published by E1.ru.

Sidorov was detained on November 25. On the same day, the court chose a preventive measure for the priest in the form of a ban on certain actions. The Yekaterinburg diocese removed the priest from ministry and removed him from the staff. The man's data was removed from the official website of the diocese.

Since 2020, the priest has held the position of secretary-referent of Metropolitan of Yekaterinburg and Verkhoturye Evgeniy (Kulberg), and was also appointed full-time cleric of the Great Chrysostom Church in honor of the Descent of the Holy Spirit.

Sidorov has a wife, Ekaterina, and a child. The woman was present at the court hearing as a result of the suppression, where she spoke out in support of her husband. Afterwards, she burst into tears in the hallway and refused to talk to the press.