Karlovy Vary, Czech Republic, May 25, 2026
Photo: expert.ru
A car carrying His Eminence Metropolitan Hilarion (Alfeev) was stopped by police yesterday, May 24, after leaving church in Karlovy Vary, Czech Republic.
During the search, police allegedly found four containers of white substance in the trunk. The Metropolitan categorically denies any involvement with illegal drugs and calls the incident a provocation. His lawyer argues there were serious procedural violations.
The defense states this incident follows months of anonymous threats against Met. Hilarion, demanding he leave Karlovy Vary. These threats were allegedly politically motivated, linked to him being and his affiliation with the Moscow Patriarchate. Met. Hilarion has been serving at the Russian representation church in the Czech Republic since January 2025, after the previous rector was evicted from the country amidst the authorities’ increasing accusations against the Orthodox Church, and after the Metropolitan was retired as the ruling hierarch in Hungary.
The defense is demanding full video footage of the stop and search, independent examination of the substance, and forensic testing including fingerprints and DNA.
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Met. Hilarion’s official Telegram channel published the following statement:
Dear brothers and sisters, dear friends!
Metropolitan Hilarion currently doesn’t have the ability to personally address the channel’s subscribers. In connection with the events in Karlovy Vary, we’re publishing information from the defense side.
On May 24, 2026, after leaving the Orthodox Church of the Holy Chief Apostles Peter and Paul in Karlovy Vary, a car carrying Metropolitan Hilarion and his accompanying cameraman was stopped. According to the Metropolitan and his defense, police officers didn’t give clear reasons for the stop related to any possible traffic violations and immediately proceeded to search the vehicle.
During the search, four small containers with a white substance were discovered in the trunk. The composition, origin, and nature of the substance must be established only by competent expertise.
Metropolitan Hilarion categorically rejects any involvement in the illegal possession of prohibited substances and considers what happened to be a provocation.
“I don’t have and have never had any connection to illegal drug trafficking. 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 of what happened,” Metropolitan Hilarion stated.
Metropolitan Hilarion’s lawyer, JUDr. Michal Pacovský, reported that the circumstances of the vehicle stop and subsequent search raise serious questions. According to the lawyer, on the highway, two police cars were essentially waiting for the vehicle carrying the Metropolitan. Upon seeing it, they began moving: one in front, the other behind. At the same time, as the defense notes, police immediately requested documents not only from the driver but also from Metropolitan Hilarion, although no complaints related to traffic violations were made.
“There should always be grounds for a stop, and usually they’re stated. In this case, according to the information we have, no complaints about traffic violations were presented. Most likely, they were tasked with conducting a search specifically of this vehicle,” the lawyer stated.
Of particular concern is that Metropolitan Hilarion, according to the defense, was led into a store at the gas station and wasn’t given the opportunity to observe the vehicle search. “There should be witnesses or video recording. None of this, as far as we know at this moment, was present. Preliminarily, we see clear signs of violations of procedural order,” noted JUDr. Michal Pacovský.
The defense also draws attention to the fact that personal belongings and bags were essentially not searched, and police attention was immediately focused on the trunk. “The police went straight to the trunk—as if they knew in advance where to look. If they were searching the entire car, why weren’t personal belongings and bags searched? This is one of the defense’s key questions,” the lawyer emphasized.
The defense side demands that all video recordings related to the vehicle stop, its escort, search, seizure of items, and subsequent procedural actions be preserved and provided. The defense also insists on independent examination of the substance, packaging, and containers, checking for fingerprints, DNA traces, and establishing who had access to the vehicle before the stop.
This incident was preceded by a lengthy period of pressure on Metropolitan Hilarion and the Orthodox community in Karlovy Vary. According to the Metropolitan, in recent months he’s repeatedly received anonymous threats, including threats of physical violence, demanding that he leave his place of ministry. These threats, according to the defense’s assessment, didn’t seem like an ordinary domestic conflict. They were politically colored: those making the threats connected Metropolitan Hilarion’s presence in Karlovy Vary with his Russian origin, Church affiliation, and ministry in a church of the Moscow Patriarchate.
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