Monk and nuns detained after Romanian exorcism death

A monk and four nuns who have been charged with killing a nun during an exorcism ritual will remain in detention, a court ruled today.

The five told a panel of judges at the Iasi Appeals Court that they did not intend to kill the nun, but were trying to help her at the request of her brother. They asked the court to cancel a 29-day detention order against them, but the three-judge panel denied their request.

Maricica Irina Cornici, 23, died last month at the secluded Holy Trinity convent in Tanacu, after she was tied up for several days without food or water and chained to a cross. She had been treated in April for schizophrenia at a local hospital and was released in the care of the convent.

Daniel Petru Corogeanu, 29, the convent’s priest, and four nuns were arrested and charged with aggravated murder and denying a person’s freedom.

Today, Corogeanu said Cornici’s brother asked him to perform the ritual after she had violent seizures and the medical treatment didn’t seem to work.

Corogeanu said the nuns tied Cornici to her own bed with towels on June 10 because she had become violent. He added that Cornici was brought into the church June 12 for a special service and she was gagged during the service. After refusing bread and holy water for several days, on June 15, Cornici ate some bread and drank some tea and then fainted, he said. “A nun took her pulse and it was very weak, and we decided to call the ambulance,” he said.

One of the nuns arrested in the case confirmed Corogeanu’s account.

“We tied her up with towels exactly the way we saw at the hospital,” said Nicoleta Arcalianu. “We tried to give her food and water but she refused.”

Corogeanu also blamed the local ambulance service, which he said did not respond to earlier appeals to come and take Cornici.

The ambulance service denied they did not respond to the call. “The ambulance was sent right away,” said nurse Aurelia Feraru in the nearby city of Vaslui. “The caller said she wasn’t breathing.”

Cornici’s death has stunned Romania and has prompted the Orthodox Church to promise reforms, including psychological tests for those seeking to enter monasteries.

The church, which has benefited from a religious revival in recent years, has condemned the Tanacu ritual as ”abominable” and has banned Corogeanu from priesthood and excluded the four nuns from the church.

Today, the church’s leader, Patriarch Teoctist said: “The tragedy in Tanacu happened due to ignorance but mostly due to pride.”

He criticised Corogeanu for failing to follow church guidelines on prayer services. “This shows us how important is to be humble and respect church rules,” he was quoted as saying by news agency Mediafax.