Lithuanian court hears testimony from nearly half of witnesses in terrorism case

Nearly half of the witnesses in the trial of an alleged terrorist group accused of plotting arson attacks in Šiauliai have now testified, Lithuania’s public broadcaster LRT reported Thursday.

The Šiauliai Regional Court is examining the case behind closed doors due to the sensitive nature of the evidence and the anonymity granted to some witnesses. “Witness testimonies are ongoing—both today and yesterday, in closed sessions. There are 10 witnesses in total, and nearly half have already been heard,” Vytautas Jončas, the court’s public relations officer, told LRT.

Six foreign nationals—citizens of Spain, Russia, Colombia, Cuba, and Belarus—stand accused in the case. Court proceedings are conducted with the assistance of interpreters in Spanish and Russian. One defendant has admitted guilt and provided details about the events, while all remain in custody after their detention was extended by three months last week.

Prosecutors allege the group carefully prepared the planned crime, with some members arriving in Lithuania weeks before the first attempted arson. The target was infrastructure and equipment belonging to TVC Solutions, a Šiauliai-based company producing mobile radio spectrum analysis stations for Ukraine’s armed forces, valued at up to €1.5 million.

The first attack was attempted on 17 September 2024, when two foreign nationals—identified as Spanish citizen J.L.A. and dual Spanish-Colombian citizen A.F.R.D.—allegedly tried to set fire to the company’s mobile stations. Authorities say the suspects fled to Riga after abandoning the attempt upon seeing bystanders nearby. They were detained the same day and later extradited to Lithuania.

A second attempt occurred five days later, on 22 September 2024, allegedly carried out by a Russian citizen, E.O.V., and a Belarusian citizen, M.B., who had traveled to Šiauliai from Spain. Believing the arson successful, they left the scene, though investigators later determined no damage had occurred as the incendiary devices failed to ignite the stored equipment.

Further investigation revealed that a Cuban citizen, Y.L.C., arrived in Šiauliai from Russia the day after the second attempt, ostensibly to assess the damage. She was arrested by Lithuanian police before leaving the country. A Colombian citizen residing in Spain, C.A.L.D., suspected of facilitating logistics and financing for the group, was detained in Spain in May 2025 and later extradited to Lithuania.

The trial will resume next week.