A court in Lithuania sentenced a Ukrainian man on Monday to three years and four months in prison over an IKEA fire in 2024 that prosecutors said was done on behalf of the Russian intelligence.
Daniil Bardadim, who was 17 at the time, was arrested on May 13, 2024, after he set fire to an IKEA store in the Lithuanian capital, Vilnius, several days prior on May 9.
He was sentenced for “an act of terror when setting Vilnius IKEA shopping centre on fire”, as well for an “attempted terror attack” in Šiauliai that houses the NATO air base, Sonata Raupenaite-Lekarauskiene, a judge at the Vilnius District Could, said Monday when delivering the verdict.
He was also convicted of unlawfully possessing explosives, acquiring special skills, and entering Lithuania and traveling to Latvia with the intent to carry out terrorist acts.
According to the case file, a timed explosive device was planted in the Ikea store on May 8, 2024. It went off during the night, triggering an explosion and fire. The blaze was quickly detected and contained, and no one was injured.
The pre-trial investigation found that the direct perpetrators were two people under the age of 20, both Ukrainian citizens.
The other suspect has been detained in Poland, where a large shopping center was set on fire.
The investigation into those behind the attack is still ongoing.
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