Former Lithuanian conservative MP Kristijonas Bartoševičius was sentenced to seven years in prison Thursday by the Panevėžys Regional Court for committing multiple sex crimes against minors.
Judge Valdas Ciesiūnas announced that Bartoševičius was found guilty on all charges. The verdict is not final and can be appealed to a higher court.
Bartoševičius was charged with 10 criminal offences, including two counts of sexual assault against minors, four counts of sexual abuse involving children under the age of 16, and four counts of causing minor bodily harm.
Prosecutor Donatas Skrebiškis had sought a 10-year prison term and a five-year ban on working with children after the sentence. The court imposed a slightly lighter penalty but granted partial approval to civil claims brought by victims’ representatives, ordering Bartoševičius to pay nearly €28,000 in damages for emotional and material harm.
He was also ordered to cover the victims’ legal expenses.
Four children were formally recognised as victims in the case. Three of them, through their legal representatives, submitted civil claims that were upheld by the court.
The court proceedings were held behind closed doors in order to protect the victims and only the verdict was read out publicly.
Bartoševičius resigned from the Seimas, Lithuania’s parliament, in early 2023 after news of the ongoing criminal investigation came to light.
Bartoševičius maintains he is innocent
Bartoševičius has pleaded not guilty. After hearing the verdict, he and his lawyer Olegas Šibkovas said they would appeal the sentence.
The former politician told reporters in court that the verdict “does not reflect reality”.
“I was very clear from the beginning that I am innocent, in my view, my guilt has not been proven,” Bartiševičius said.
According to him, the prosecutor’s case was missing some of “the elements in the chain”, did not present “all the details and nuances”.
He also claimed that the court was under intense public pressure to convict him, as shown by the public reaction when he asked to be allowed to go on holiday to Italy last year.
“It was a very good test to see how the public would react to an acquittal,” he said.
Bartoševičius’ lawyer said that he was prepared to take the case to the European Court of Human Rights because, in his opinion, the proceedings violated the European Convention on Human Rights.
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