Antanas Kandrotas-Celofanas claims he has travelled to Belarus

Antanas Kandrotas-Celofanas, a prominent protest activist currently facing multiple court cases in Lithuania, has stated he has travelled to Belarus, according to a Monday report by news portal Delfi.

Kandrotas-Celofanas confirmed to the outlet that he arrived in Minsk by plane on Sunday. “No one stopped me at the border. This is already my second trip here this year,” he said. In a video posted earlier on his Telegram channel, he claimed he was in the Belarusian capital “to resolve various issues,” adding: “As they say, we love our homeland not with words, but with deeds. I am working in Minsk for the second time this year. Correctly. There are serious cases, many problems that need to be solved. Good work has been done.”

The activist is currently subject to a pretrial restriction—a written pledge not to leave Lithuania—though he maintains his travel does not violate the measure, arguing it does not interfere with court proceedings. His lawyer, Erikas Rugienius, told ELTA news agency he had no information about his client being abroad. “I don’t know anything about that. Kandrotas-Celofanas’ phone is switched off,” Rugienius said.

Kandrotas-Celofanas is awaiting final rulings in several cases. In September 2025, Vilnius Regional Court upheld a four-year prison sentence for his role in 2021 riots near the Seimas (Lithuanian parliament), though the verdict has not yet entered into force. Court spokesperson Lina Nemeikaitė confirmed the travel restriction remains in place until the ruling is finalised and noted no requests for foreign travel had been submitted by Kandrotas-Celofanas or his defence.

In February, he was convicted of inciting hatred against former MP Tomas Vytautas Raskevičius over his sexual orientation and sentenced to one year in prison, with the court recognising him as a repeat offender. That verdict is also not yet final. Separately, Vilnius District Court is examining charges that he assaulted public figure Valdas Bartkevičius in a public place.