A brothel was recently found on the grounds of a centrally located monastery in Moscow reports RIA Novosti citing source in a law enforcement.

"The salon is owned by private individuals and has no relation to the church," said the source.

According to the Interior Ministry, the brothel was opened in a hotel on a nearby road.

"This hotel was known for catering 'to lovers.' Inside are seven rooms of various price categories. The discovery of the brothel resulted in the arrest of 2 girls," said an Interior Ministry statement.

A criminal case under the article "The organization of prostitution", which involves up to 10 years in prison, is currently being considered.

The Stretensky Monastery is an Orthodox male stauropegic monastery [answering directly to Russian Orthodox Church Patriarch Kirill] in honor of the Vladimir Icon of the Mother of God. The last head of the monastery was Archimandrite Tikhon, who, according to some, is the spiritual mentor of Vladimir Putin.

Recently, several scandals related to the Russian Orthodox Church have been reported in the media. One recent example is from a report from the Society for the Protection of Consumer Rights (SPCR), which stated that: under the guise of restorating the Cathedral of Christ the Savior a business centre was built where less than 7% of the area was given to religious purposes. Also, representatives from the SPCR accused the Church of evading taxes on the sale of non-religious goods.