Court to deliver verdict in “checks” case against Kaišiadorys mayor Čėsna

A court in Lithuania is set to deliver its verdict later this month in the so-called “checks” case against Šarūnas Čėsna, the mayor of Kaišiadorys district, LRT reports.

The Kaunas Regional Court plans to announce its decision by the end of June in the case involving allegations of expense report fraud. This is the final case of its kind in the court, as legal changes have since reclassified such offenses as minor, shifting them to lower-level district courts.

Prosecutors accuse Čėsna of falsifying 42 expense reports between 2019 and 2023 while serving as a council member, misrepresenting fuel purchase costs. Investigators claim he used company-issued fuel cards to pay for diesel, allegedly defrauding the municipality of €4,424, which he later repaid during the pre-trial investigation.

The case involves fuel purchases made using cards from his own company, Telesita—a telecommunications retail business where he was director from 2015 to 2023 and currently holds a 50% stake. Čėsna has stated the company owed him money, and the municipality’s payments were offsetting that debt. Other fuel purchases were made using cards belonging to private individuals, including his father, Vytautas Čėsna, and a former council member, now the municipality’s administration director, Karolius Petkevičius.

Prosecutors have repeatedly requested a guilty verdict, a €10,000 fine, and a three-year ban from public service. Čėsna has pleaded not guilty and seeks acquittal. The verdict will be announced on June 25.