Former Orthodox abbess sentenced to six years for embezzlement

A Prague court has sentenced former abbess Taťána Hanhur to six years in prison for embezzlement. According to the judge, Hanhur caused losses of at least 73 million crowns to the Orthodox Church.

Prosecutors said that in 2022 she transferred a monastery in Loděnice from church ownership back to the Czech Association of Manufacturers and Trading Companies for Commercial Cooperation with the Russian Federation, which had donated the property to the church in 2012. The transfer was allegedly carried out without the consent of the Prague Orthodox Eparchy.

Judge Iva Říhová said the defendant had no right to treat the church property as if it were her own.

The verdict is not yet binding, with both sides reserving the right to appeal.