Kaišiadorys mayor Čėsna convicted in fuel card fraud case, fined €6,000

Kaunas Regional Court on Thursday found Kaišiadorys District Mayor Šarūnas Čėsna guilty of abuse of office, fraud, and document forgery in a fuel card expense scandal, imposing a €6,000 fine, LRT reports.

Prosecutors had sought a €10,000 fine and a three-year ban from public service, but the court opted for a lesser penalty and declined to apply any additional sanctions. The ruling is not yet final, as it may be appealed to the Lithuanian Court of Appeals. Čėsna has denied wrongdoing and requested acquittal. He did not attend the verdict announcement.

According to the case, between 2019 and 2023, while serving as a Kaišiadorys District Municipal Council member, Čėsna allegedly falsified 42 expense reports, submitting false data about fuel purchases. Investigators found he used company-issued fuel cards to cover diesel expenses, fraudulently obtaining €4,424 intended for the municipality. He repaid the damages during the pre-trial investigation.

The fuel in question was purchased using cards from his own company, Telesita, in which he holds a 50% stake and previously served as director. Čėsna claimed the company owed him money and that municipal funds reimbursed via the submitted receipts were used to cover the debt. He also submitted fuel receipts from several individuals, including his father, Vytautas Čėsna, and Karolio Petkevičius, the current head of the Kaišiadorys District Municipal Administration and a former council member. Petkevičius is also under investigation in the same case.

Čėsna stated he left the Liberal Movement after being formally charged in the case.