Kristijonas Bartoševičius, a former conservative MP who is accused of sexual crimes against minors, was questioned at the District Court in Panevėžys, northern Lithuania, on Wednesday.
The next hearing will question the parents of his alleged victims.
“The court will question eight legal representatives, that is, the parents of the child victims, and four witnesses who are the parents of the underaged witnesses. These are the children who were interviewed during the pre-trial investigation and told their parents something, so those parents will be questioned,” Jolita Gudelienė, spokeswoman for the court, told reporters after the hearing on Wednesday.
The next hearing is scheduled for January 24.
On Wednesday, Olegas Sibkovas, defending Bartoševičius, confirmed after the hearing that the questioning of his client had been completed. According to the lawyer, Bartoševičius maintains that he is innocent of all the charges against him.
Bartoševičius is accused of committing 10 criminal offences, including two sexual assaults on minors, four offences of molestation of a person under 16, and four offences of minor bodily harm.
He is facing a prison sentence between three and 15 years for sexual assault, up to five years for molesting a person under 16, and lighter sentences for health impairment.
Bartoševičius’ alleged offences date back to the time when he was serving as a member of parliament. He was elected with the list of the conservative Homeland Union-Lithuanian Christian Democrats (TS-LKD) in 2020 and resigned a year ago.
Delfi.lt reported earlier that the politician’s alleged victims were members of Ąžuoliukas, a Vilnius-based choir for boys and young men.
Prosecutors launched their pre-trial investigation in this case in November 2022 and brought formal suspicions against Bartoševičius in February.
Bartosevicius stepped down as an MP in late January 2023.
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