A passer-by detained a minor in central Vilnius on Wednesday morning after catching him spraying the words "Vilnia naša" – "Vilnius is ours" – in Cyrillic script on the bank of the Neris river.
The incident is the latest in a series of similar graffiti appearances at symbolic locations across the capital, which Lithuanian security services suspect are being orchestrated by Russian and Belarusian intelligence.
Paulius (whose real name is known to LRT.lt) was on his way to work early on Wednesday morning when he noticed something unusual.
"I saw a person crouching down, doing something. I didn't pay much attention at first, but when I got closer I noticed a person in a hoodie, dressed in black, photographing something," he said.
He then noticed that the person was photographing an inscription in Cyrillic script. Paulius was already aware of such markings appearing around Vilnius and knew that, according to law enforcement and intelligence services, they are intended to sow discord in Lithuania.
"I asked: 'What are you doing here?' He looked at me, realised he had been caught, and started running," Paulius recalled. He gave chase.
When the suspect reached Gediminas Avenue, Paulius called on passers-by to stop him. The boy eventually stumbled and fell, and Paulius pinned him to the ground.
The detained boy told Paulius he was only 14 years old, began to cry and apologised.
"He said he had not wanted to do it, that he had done it because he had been threatened – that if he did not paint those words and photograph them, his home would be burnt down," Paulius said.
When police arrived, they indicated to Paulius that the boy was already known to them. Paulius also noted that the teenager spoke Lithuanian without any accent.
Paulius said he was motivated to act partly because of his membership of the Lithuanian Riflemen's Union, where he had received both physical and psychological preparation and had been made aware of provocations linked to Russia targeting monuments and public spaces across the Baltic states.
"I don't know about others, but what lies behind this is not hatred – the person who was painting was most likely himself a victim.
Someone is manipulating these people in a very systematic way. In wartime, such people could betray positions or help adjust enemy artillery. When you think about it, these things are frightening. This was certainly not the wish of some angry Russian or Belarusian to cause trouble – it is systematic work," he reflected.
Similar graffiti in the same distinctive style has recently appeared at several symbolic locations in Vilnius, including near the Government building and outside a Belarusian school.
Vilnius police confirmed to LRT.lt that the detained individual was born in 2011, but declined to provide further details, citing the ongoing pre-trial investigation and the involvement of a minor.
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