Family of deceased infant from Kaunas hospitals files police complaint

The family of a child with Patau syndrome who died in Kaunas hospitals has drawn suspicion from neighbors, leading to a formal complaint being filed with the police, LRT.lt reports.

According to the mother’s lawyer, the State Child Rights Protection and Adoption Service is seeking to remove the deceased infant and six other children from the family. This action follows Kaunas hospitals notifying child rights authorities about the child’s critical condition but failing to report the death promptly.

The family currently has six children: three are the biological children of the current couple, two have a different biological father, and one has a third, possibly living abroad. Their ages range from approximately 3 to 17 years old. The deceased infant was the seventh child in the family.

Neighbors familiar with the family claim the infant’s appearance at birth suggested a need for immediate medical attention, which may not have been provided. The father, Mintautas, told LRT.lt that the family sought help from Kaunas hospitals because the child’s weight was not increasing with tube feeding, and the infant could not suckle due to Patau syndrome.

One neighbor, who asked to remain anonymous, expressed concern: “If strangers hadn’t noticed the birth of this child, who knows what the outcome would have been. Given their lifestyle, they didn’t go to the hospital, didn’t visit doctors during pregnancy, and gave birth at home. In my subjective opinion, the child ended up in the hospital too late due to the parents’ negligence.”

Another neighbor added: “I am outraged that the focus is on the final moment when the child died and everyone is mourning. I am not against children’s rights, but in my understanding, this family should have been under scrutiny for children’s rights long ago.”

Neighbors had previously filed a police complaint to investigate a suspicious pregnancy in the past, as the mother may have been pregnant but later had no child. The father confirmed that such a complaint was indeed made and that he and his wife were questioned by the police.

“There was a summons to the police for questioning. I went, but the police officers refused to speak with me, saying they wanted to talk to my wife. I didn’t know what it was about, so I brought my wife to give a statement. An anonymous report was filed. The investigation was closed,” Mintautas said.

Julija Samorokovskaja, head of the Communication Division of the Vilnius County Chief Police Commissariat, confirmed that the complaint was received but that in February 2025, the police decided not to initiate a pre-trial investigation.

Darius Varnas, mayor of Ukmergė District, stated that the family lives differently from the norm. “As far as I know, they are not very willing to accept various services because they live a bit differently from other people; they refused all vaccines,” he said.

Jolanta Keburienė, chair of the Ukmergė Emergency Medical Services Professional Union “Solidarumas,” corroborated that the family had previously prevented medical assistance for an elderly person they were living with. “About three years ago, they were living with an elderly person and simply did not allow her to be taken to a medical institution for help. I was called to the elderly person; her brother invited me because they had taken her from the hospital against medical advice after a stroke and did not give her medication. That was the situation,” Keburienė said.

Asta Leonavičienė, head of the Social Support Department of the Ukmergė District Municipality Administration, noted that case management for this family ended in 2023. The family had lived in social housing for a time but moved out nearly a year ago. “The children are educated not in general education schools but in private schools like ‘Vėjo vaikai,’ which are nature-oriented. But from 2023 until now, there have been no signs that the family needed a social worker assigned,” she said.

As the State Child Rights Protection and Adoption Service considers removing the children from the family to ensure their temporary protection, the family has been offered temporary accommodation.