Prosecutors drop investigation into Širvintos mayor over alleged “envelope wages” at family firm

The Vilnius Regional Prosecutor’s Office has terminated a pre-trial investigation into Širvintos District Mayor Živilė Pinskuvienė over suspicions of falsified financial records and untaxed “envelope wage” payments at her family’s company, LRT reports.

The probe was closed in December 2025 after investigators determined there was insufficient objective evidence to prove a criminal offence had occurred, according to Gintarė Vitkauskaitė-Šatkauskienė, a spokesperson for the prosecutor’s office.

Pinskuvienė was questioned as a special witness—a legal status in Lithuania for individuals suspected of potential involvement in a crime but against whom there is not enough evidence to formally designate them as suspects. Under this status, she was interrogated about her possible role in the alleged financial misconduct.

The investigation stemmed from a 2024 ruling by the Vilnius Regional Court, later upheld by the Court of Appeal, which found that employees of Danielita—a publishing company linked to Pinskuvienė’s family—had received €51,411 in undeclared cash wages between 2008 and 2018. The court also confirmed that the firm’s convicted accountant, Olga V., had testified that Pinskuvienė and her husband, Jonas Pinskus, had used company funds for personal expenses and authorised off-the-books cash payments to staff and service providers.

Pinskuvienė, who has held various managerial roles at Danielita since 2004, and her husband were previously questioned as ordinary witnesses in 2022. Both denied any wrongdoing, including the payment of unofficial wages. The prosecutor’s decision to drop the case is final and not subject to appeal.

The original probe was launched by Vilnius County Police’s Economic Crime Investigation Board following the Court of Appeal’s 2024 verdict against Olga V., who was sentenced for falsifying accounts and embezzling over €83,000 from the company.