Lithuania’s Financial Crimes Investigation Service (FNTT) is investigating a large-scale fraud where an organised group embezzled 6 million from European Union-funded projects.
The European delegated prosecutor Vytautas Kukaitis told the press conference on Thursday that 26 people have been indicted and more than 30 companies from Lithuania and at least 10 other countries were involved in the fraud scheme.
Most of the suspects are from the Kaunas region, but they also operated elsewhere, for example in Vilnius, Panevėžys, and Šiauliai.
According to the prosecutor, the criminals have been operating since 2018 and have been improving their fraud scheme over the years.
“In the context of innovation projects, an organised group, by simulating transactions between interested parties, [...] acquired equipment worth millions of euros and used a typology of inflated prices relevant to the European Public Prosecutor’s Office,” Kukaitis said.
Moreover, some of the equipment was purchased from countries other than those listed in the documents, and the second-hand equipment was listed as new.
According to Kukaitis, between 2018 and 2024, the suspects misled the Innovation Agency and embezzled almost 6 million euros. Law enforcement authorities say they have managed to prevent another illegal acquisition of a similar amount.
Rolandas Urbonas, head of the FNTT Kaunas Regional Board, said that since December, over 90 searches have been carried out, all 26 suspects have been arrested, and six of them have been subsequently remanded in custody for between two and three months.
“This pre-trial investigation is of a particularly large scale, with over 200 bank accounts and statements of individuals and companies being analysed,” he said.
Prosecutor Kukaitis also noted that the mastermind of the crimes is known and that the criminal group was active not only in the EU.
“We have now identified at least ten foreign countries that are in our investigation area. One of the aspects is that the crime has extended beyond the EU, with several Asian countries involved,” he said.
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