{"id":198518,"date":"2026-08-04T12:36:55","date_gmt":"2026-08-04T09:36:55","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/pozirk.online\/en\/news\/198518\/"},"modified":"2026-08-04T12:36:56","modified_gmt":"2026-08-04T09:36:56","slug":"vilnius-asks-minsk-to-extradite-lithuanian-convicted-of-financial-crimes","status":"publish","type":"articles","link":"https:\/\/pozirk.online\/en\/news\/198518\/","title":{"rendered":"Vilnius asks Minsk to extradite Lithuanian convicted of financial crimes"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<figure class=\"block-image block-image-normal\">\n\n  <img decoding=\"async\" width=\"1128\" height=\"752\" src=\"https:\/\/pozirk.online\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/kandrotas_bt_1128x752.jpg\" class=\"attachment-full size-full\" alt=\"\" srcset=\"https:\/\/pozirk.online\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/kandrotas_bt_1128x752.jpg 1128w, https:\/\/pozirk.online\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/kandrotas_bt_1128x752-354x236.jpg 354w, https:\/\/pozirk.online\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/kandrotas_bt_1128x752-734x490.jpg 734w, https:\/\/pozirk.online\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/kandrotas_bt_1128x752-178x118.jpg 178w, https:\/\/pozirk.online\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/kandrotas_bt_1128x752-768x512.jpg 768w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1128px) 100vw, 1128px\" \/>\n  <figcaption>\n      <div class=\"block-image__descr\">\n\n        Antanas Kandrotas in Belarus\n    <\/div>\n  \n       <div class=\"block-image__author\">\n                <span>(A screengrab from a Belarus 4 video)<\/span>\n    <\/div>\n     <\/figcaption>\n<\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>August 4, <em>Pozirk.<\/em> <\/strong>The Lithuanian Ministry of Justice has asked Belarus to extradite businessman and blogger Antanas Kandrotas, known as Celofanas, who fled to Belarus after conviction in Lithuania, the ministry\u2019s press office reports.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Deputy Justice Minister Martynas Dobrovolskis said the extradition request was submitted to ensure the enforcement of final court decisions and preventing convicted individuals from evading prosecution abroad.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The extradition request was prepared in accordance with international law and the principles of international legal cooperation in criminal matters, he noted.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>In June, the Lithuanian Court of Appeals sentenced Kandrotas to three and a half years in prison in a financial crimes case. The ruling has taken effect but cannot be enforced while he remains outside Lithuania.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Later that month, the Kaunas Regional Court issued a European arrest warrant for Kandrotas.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>In early May, Kandrotas confirmed that he fled to Belarus, where he criticized Lithuanian authorities and denied charges against him in an interview with the Belarusian propaganda workers.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>In September 2025, he was sentenced to four years in prison over a violent anti-COVID rally outside Lithuania\u2019s parliament in 2021. Earlier this year, he received another one-year sentence for alleged incitement of hatred and disturbing public order. Both verdicts have been appealed and have not taken effect.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>August 4, Pozirk. The Lithuanian Ministry of Justice has asked Belarus to extradite businessman and blogger Antanas Kandrotas, known as Celofanas, who fled to Belarus after conviction in Lithuania, the ministry\u2019s press office reports. Deputy Justice Minister Martynas Dobrovolskis said the extradition request was submitted to ensure the enforcement of final court decisions and preventing [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":83,"featured_media":198505,"template":"","rubric":[15],"class_list":["post-198518","articles","type-articles","status-publish","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","rubric-society"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v25.5 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/wordpress\/plugins\/seo\/ -->\n<title>Vilnius asks Minsk to extradite Lithuanian convicted of financial crimes | Pozirk<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"August 4, Pozirk. The Lithuanian Ministry of Justice has asked Belarus to extradite businessman and blogger Antanas Kandrotas, known as Celofanas, who\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/pozirk.online\/en\/news\/198518\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Vilnius asks Minsk to extradite Lithuanian convicted of financial crimes | Pozirk\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"August 4, Pozirk. 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