Lithuanian prosecutors question former PM Gintautas Paluckas’s wife in corruption probe

The wife of Lithuania’s former prime minister Gintautas Paluckas has been formally named as a suspect in a pre-trial investigation, the Delfi news portal reported Thursday, citing two unrelated sources.

Ilma Paluckienė, the spouse of the ex-prime minister, faces allegations linked to an ongoing probe into potential abuse of power and illicit enrichment, though neither the Prosecutor General’s Office nor the Special Investigations Service (STT) confirmed or denied the report. Both institutions stated that all publicly releasable details about the investigation had already been disclosed.

Paluckienė declined to comment when contacted by Delfi.

The development follows Paluckas’s own questioning as a special witness in February in the same pre-trial investigation. The case stems from journalistic investigations published last summer, which examined Paluckas’s past business ties and questionable transactions. In late July 2025, he resigned as prime minister, and his Social Democratic-led government stepped down in early August.

Mindaugas Sinkevičius, who succeeded Paluckas as Social Democratic Party leader, told reporters on Thursday he had no knowledge of the allegations against Paluckienė. “Gintautas Paluckas’s wife is his wife—if it were my wife, I’d know more,” he said. “I truly know no more than what’s been published.”