Vilnius city administration director condemns police raids as unlawful

Adomas Bužinskas, director of the Vilnius City Municipality Administration, has publicly criticised police officers for conducting what he calls “unsanctioned searches” of his office, home, and car, according to a statement posted on social media and reported by LRT.

Bužinskas stressed he has “no objections to the pretrial investigation itself,” noting that the administration has fully cooperated for nearly two years. “There is nothing to hide,” he stated. His criticism instead targets the methods used by officers from the Vilnius County Chief Police Commissariat, arguing that routine procedures—such as a phone call, email, or in-person summons—were ignored in favour of intrusive searches.

The director claimed he never received any formal summons to appear for questioning, either in person or through official channels. Police later cited his alleged failure to attend an interview as justification for the raids, which Bužinskas called “illogical,” pointing out he was on publicly documented leave abroad at the time.

A court had authorised the seizure of specific items from the administration’s premises on March 2, but officers executed the order over two months later, on May 7, while Bužinskas was away. When the initial search of his office failed to locate the targeted items—including a mobile phone—authorities proceeded with unscheduled searches of his home and vehicle without a new court warrant, he alleged.

“It’s absurd to suggest I would hide a phone at home or in my car while I was out of the country,” Bužinskas wrote. He acknowledged the damage to his reputation but expressed hope that police would review their officers’ conduct to prevent similar incidents in future.

Police confirmed the searches took place as part of a pretrial investigation into potential abuse of office and dereliction of duty. Investigators reportedly contacted Bužinskas on the following Monday to deliver a formal summons.