Court extends electronic monitoring for Ukrainian terrorism defendant
Tuesday 6th October 2026 on 10:30 in
Lithuania
Vilnius Regional Court has extended by three months the intensive supervision of Bohdan Asieiev, a Ukrainian citizen charged in a terrorism case, LRT reported, citing ELTA.
Asieiev asked the court to replace the measure with bail, a written promise not to leave Lithuania or the surrender of his documents. The court ruled that intensive supervision was the appropriate measure for him.
A three-judge panel is due to begin hearing the case on October 9. Six people are accused of belonging to an organised terrorist group and preparing an attack in Lithuania that prosecutors say was intended to kill at least two people: Lentvaris-based public figure Valdas Bartkevičius, who supports Ukraine and speaks out against the Kremlin, and Russian opposition activist Ruslan Gabasov, who lives in Lithuania.
The six defendants are Asieiev, Vadim Duboiskis, Ikhtiandr Karibov, Andrei Liapin, Artur Vartanian and Vikentijus Chopozovas. They are citizens of Russia, Greece, Georgia, Ukraine, Belarus and Lithuania. They face charges including involvement in an organised terrorist group, recruiting for and financing terrorist activity, travelling for terrorist purposes, illegally collecting private information and possessing software and passwords unlawfully. They are also charged with offences related to activities against the Lithuanian state and possessing drugs without intent to distribute.
The court will hear the case in closed sessions, said Mindaugas Povilanskas, head of the Vilnius Regional Court’s Criminal Cases Division. Four of the defendants are in detention, while two are under intensive supervision and required to wear ankle monitors.
The case was separated from a broader pretrial investigation that is continuing. Fourteen people have been charged in that investigation with suspected terrorism-related and other offences. It began in 2025 after a Russian citizen living in Lithuania reported finding a tracking device in his car. Investigators said they later established that his life and health were at real risk and identified people suspected of planning the killings of both him and a Lithuanian citizen.
According to investigators, the alleged targets were selected because of their political views and public activities. The broader investigation is being conducted by the Lithuanian Criminal Police Bureau in cooperation with the State Security Department and international partners.