Prosecutors in Lithuania have referred a major fraud case linked to the Foxpay investigation to court, charging four individuals, including Vilhelmas Germanas and Mindaugas Navickas, with fraud and document forgery involving cryptocurrency mining equipment worth more than 23 million euros.
“An indictment has been filed in a criminal case where Vilhelmas Germanas, Mindaugas Navickas, and two others are accused of fraud and document forgery. Acting as an organised group, they allegedly acquired high-value assets belonging to others,” Darius Stankevičius, a prosecutor from the Prosecutor General’s Office, told a press conference on Friday.
Navickas is the husband of Lithuania’s former social security and labour minister Monika Navickienė.
Stankevičius said evidence indicates that Germanas and Navickas organised and led the group, which allegedly obtained assets worth nearly 24 million euros.
Germanas also faces additional charges related to possession of forged identity documents, prosecutors said.
The case stems from an investigation into the fintech firm Foxpay, focusing on the alleged misappropriation of high-value crypto-mining equipment and other suspected criminal activities.
The case file, comprising 109 volumes, has been transferred to the Vilnius District Court.
“To secure civil claims, prosecutors have ordered the seizure of the defendants’ assets totalling more than 7 million euros,” Stankevičius said, adding that restrictive measures have been imposed to ensure the smooth progress of the trial.
Germanas has been ordered to post 1 million euros in bail and is subject to intensive supervision with an electronic monitoring device. Other defendants face less restrictive measures, including written pledges not to leave the country.
Navickas has been ordered to pay 100,000 euros in bail along with travel restrictions.
Robertas Sadianecas, head of the Financial Crime Investigation Service, said the scheme was uncovered during a law enforcement operation in October 2024.
According to investigators, the group signed a contract with equipment manufacturers to operate cryptocurrency mining devices in Kaunas. A total of 5,400 units were delivered to Lithuania in 10 trucks, but only a small portion was ever put into operation.
“The total value of the equipment exceeded 23 million euros. Almost all of it was flown out of Lithuania on four separate flights within a very short period,” Sadianecas said.
Authorities have previously said the broader Foxpay investigation involves suspected embezzlement, theft, large-scale fraud, bribery and money laundering.
Investigators believe more than 17 million euros may have been laundered, with alleged bribes reaching up to 100,000 euros.
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