Court rejects Gapšys’ early release for the third time

A district court in Kaunas has for the third time rejected a request to release Vytautas Gapšys, a former member of the Seimas (Lithuanian parliament) imprisoned for corruption, on parole, LRT reports.

Gapšys, who is serving a 4-year and 3-month sentence, has appealed the decision to the Kaunas Regional Court. A parole commission had previously supported his early release, citing low risk of reoffending and noting that this is his first real term of imprisonment. The commission also highlighted his good conduct, including volunteer work and employment as an assistant laborer, business consultant, and provider of free legal services at a crisis center.

However, prosecutors from the Kaunas Regional Prosecutor’s Office challenged the commission’s assessment, arguing that Gapšys still has corrective factors related to his lifestyle, environment, thinking, and behavior that require further rehabilitation. The court agreed with the prosecutors on June 11, refusing to uphold the commission’s decision.

Gapšys has less than two years left to serve. He currently spends weekdays in an open-type prison in Kaunas and weekends with his family in Vilnius.

In 2023, Lithuania’s Court of Appeal ruled that Gapšys, as a member of the Seimas, had used his position and influence to pressure state officials on behalf of Raimondas Kurlianskis, then vice president of the MG Baltic concern, in exchange for disguised bribes. These included a 12,100 euro discount on political advertising for the Labour Party and a 15,000 euro donation to a public institution. Gapšys was among several figures, including other former MPs and the Labour Party itself, convicted in the political corruption case.