Lithuanian librarian convicted over €150 embezzlement appeals to European Court of Human Rights

A former director of a public library in Lithuania, convicted of embezzling €150, has filed a complaint with the European Court of Human Rights (ECtHR) in Strasbourg, arguing her prosecution was unjust and disproportionate, LRT reports.

Indra Tamašauskienė, the ex-head of Jonos Lankučio Public Library in Klaipėda District Municipality, was found guilty in April 2024 of misappropriating €150 placed in her coat pocket by a colleague. An appellate court upheld a 7,500-euro fine for abuse of office, then classified as a serious crime.

Her lawyer, Gintautas Danišauskas, claims the conviction violates both Lithuanian law and the European Convention on Human Rights. He argues that under domestic legal practice—citing a precedent involving Jonava Mayor Mindaugas Sinkevičius—criminal liability for financial misconduct in public office only applies to sums exceeding €12,500. Sinkevičius was acquitted in 2025 after repaying disputed expenses, with courts ruling his actions did not meet the threshold for “significant material harm.”

Danišauskas asserts Tamašauskienė’s case should have been handled as an administrative offense under Article 108 of Lithuania’s Code of Administrative Violations, which prescribes a fine—not criminal prosecution—for misappropriation of up to €150. The appeal also alleges violations of her right to a fair trial, claiming the proceedings were neither impartial nor conducted within a reasonable timeframe.

The ECtHR will first decide whether to accept the complaint for review; no timeline for a decision has been set.