Mantas Adomėnas has said he is stepping down as Lithuania’s deputy foreign minister after being caught driving under the influence of alcohol during a police operation over the weekend.
LNK TV has reported that Adomėnas was stopped by the police while driving his Subaru car in the small town of Alanta on Saturday morning.
The politician himself said he had 0.62 permilles of alcohol in his bloodstream.
He faces a fine of between 800 and 1,100 euros.
The vice-minister posted a statement on Facebook on Saturday, saying that he regretted and apologised for this mistake and was resigning from his post.
Foreign Minister Gabrielius Landsbergis and Prime Minister Ingrida Šimonytė said they approved of his decision to step down.
Adomėnas was appointed foreign vice-minister in mid-December 2020 following the formation of the current cabinet.
He was a member of the conservative Homeland Union-Lithuanian Christian Democrats (TS-LKD) party between 2000 and 2018, but was stripped of party membership in June 2018 for “improper ties” with MG Baltic, one of the country's largest business groups.
Adomėnas served as a member of the parliament between 2008 and 2020. He ran for an MP seat in a single-member constituency in the October 2020 elections, but lost.
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