Czech Republic, May 28, 2026
His Eminence Metropolitan Hilarion (Alfeyev) has left the Czech Republic following his release from custody without charge, he told RIA-Novosti.
The hierarch was detained on May 24 after Czech police stopped his vehicle and allegedly discovered prohibited substances in the boot. He was released on May 26 without any charges being brought, without bail, and without any additional conditions.
The investigation into the incident is ongoing. It remains to be established what substances were contained in the packets found in the vehicle, and whose fingerprints are on the packaging. Met. Hilarion has stated that neither he nor the videographer who was arrested with him have any connection to them whatsoever.
The Metropolitan said he has specific suspicions as to who may have authored the anonymous letter that triggered the police stop, but declined to share them publicly. He noted that there was a sustained media campaign against him in the Czech press over the previous year, which he believes was aimed at having him placed on the country’s sanctions list. “The forces interested in removing me from the Czech Republic remained. I think they found another way to be rid of me,” he said.
The question of where Metropolitan Hilarion will continue his ministry has been left to His Holiness Patriarch Kirill of Moscow and All Russia, he said.
Recounting the events surrounding his detention, the Metropolitan described how his car was pulled over by two police vehicles and the boot searched without video recording and without independent witnesses. He said he was called over to the vehicle only after three small packets and a small jar containing a white powder had already been laid out. The substances were allegedly found behind the lining of the fire extinguisher compartment, and one officer handled the items without gloves. He and the videographer were subsequently questioned for six hours, handcuffed, and held in a remand facility before being transferred to a larger prison the following day.
Met. Hilarion described his time in solitary confinement on the third day as unexpectedly meaningful. “I conversed with God. I had time to say many important things to Him, and to hear many important things from Him. These were truly unforgettable hours of communion with God,” he said, adding that such a conversation could hardly have taken place in any ordinary setting. He was reminded, he said, of the Apostles Peter and Paul in chains, and of Dostoevsky.
When told he was free to go, he said he couldn’t believe it had ended so quickly and received it as a miracle.
The Metropolitan said he wouldn’t be sharing his future travel plans. “I prefer not to speak publicly about my plans so that it doesn’t occur to anyone to plant drugs on me again,” he said.
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