Scammers have already taken nearly €10m from Lithuanian residents this year, with total household and corporate losses nearing €12m. Police and banks say the main traps are phone calls, fake bank messages and fraudulent transfers, with the biggest losses sealed within minutes and pensioners and people controlling both personal and company funds most exposed.
TV3 on Friday brought renewed attention to the death of 5-year-old Maria, whose mother Laura Marija says the child was misdiagnosed and did not receive proper treatment for laryngitis during a hospital stay three and a half years ago. In politics, pressure on Saulius Skvernelis intensified as a Spinter Tyrimai poll published today showed a sharp drop in his favourable ratings and weaker support for the Democrats’ Union “For Lithuania” after parliament stripped him of immunity in a corruption case alleging at least €51,000 in bribes. The party is being run on an interim basis by Virginijus Sinkevičius, with a permanent leader due by August.
Foreign Minister Kestutis Budrys told a closed meeting of Social Democrat lawmakers yesterday that pressure from the United States was emerging to allow Belarusian fertiliser transit through Lithuania. He also described a workaround under which a US company would buy Belaruskali cargo in Belarus and relabel it as American goods, although President Gitanas Nauseda said yesterday that he saw no such pressure and Social Democrat leader Mindaugas Sinkevičius urged politicians not to turn the issue into a public fight. Police in Kaunas this week dismantled a home-delivery alcohol ring that kept operating even while under surveillance, with nearly 100 officers from Kaunas and Vilnius involved in an organised crime investigation carrying a potential prison term of up to eight years.
In energy, commentator Greta Ilekytė argued that Europe remains exposed to import shocks even after cutting dependence on Russian fuel, leaving domestic generation, renewables, grids and storage as the main buffer. In culture, attention remains on Lion Ceccah before the Eurovision final, with his team citing fatigue and hinting at a surprise on stage.
At a security policy conference in Vilnius, Kęstutis Budrys said Lithuania must build coalitions that can act, not just discuss. The National Library of Lithuania acquired three valuable rare editions.