The icons stolen in January have returned to the city churches

Police returned four stolen icons to Irkutsk churches, taken in January from the Exaltation of the Cross and Holy Trinity churches. At the Holy Trinity church, detectives were praised, and the detained 46 year old suspect, previously convicted of a similar crime, is in custody. The handmade icons by Siberian masters of the 19th and 20th centuries will return to the churches, and the investigation continues.

Police officers returned icons to Irkutsk churches that had been stolen in January of this year. The ceremony took place the day before at the Holy Trinity Church.
The relics were handed over by the head of the Intermunicipal Department of the Ministry of Internal Affairs “Irkutskoye,” Police Colonel Oleg Savin. In addition, city head Dmitry Berdnikov presented commendations to criminal investigation officers Evgeny Kolosnitsyn, Evgeny Dudchenko, and the head of the investigative department, Natalya Palchik, noting their high professionalism and efficiency in solving the theft of Orthodox icons: “Not one generation of Irkutsk residents prayed before these icons, so in addition to their historical value, each of them has, above all, immense spiritual value. Each icon is a piece of the life and history of our city, which is especially symbolic on the eve of Irkutsk’s upcoming anniversary.”
With the blessing of Metropolitan Vadim, Archpriest Alexander Vasilenko presented the distinguished police officers with bishops’ certificates, thanking them for the work they had done and wishing them continued success in serving the good of the fatherland.
As a reminder, on February 2 a 46-year-old man was detained in one of the churches — at that very time he was preparing for a new theft. He turned out to be a native of the city of Ivanovo. It is known that the detainee was released from prison in December 2015, where he had served a sentence for a similar crime.
The first theft occurred on January 16 at the Church of the Exaltation of the Cross. There, the clergy discovered the disappearance of an icon depicting Seraphim of Sarov.
The next crime took place on January 30. This time the offender stole three more icons from the Holy Trinity Church located on 5th Army Street.
The suspect is currently in custody. At the request of the investigative authorities of the MIA Department of Russia “Irkutskoye,” the court ordered him held in custody as a preventive measure. Detectives are checking him for involvement in other crimes.
The criminal investigation continues, and the material evidence — the four icons — will take their place in the churches. All of the icons are handmade works by Siberian icon painters of the 19th and 20th centuries.