Lithuanian MP questioned in defamation and hate-speech investigation

Lithuanian MP Remigijus Žemaitaitis has been questioned as a special witness in a criminal investigation into alleged defamation, incitement against a group of people and breaches of privacy, LRT reported, citing the BNS news agency.

Prosecutors confirmed that Žemaitaitis was questioned as a witness about possible criminal acts he may have committed. The investigation is led by a prosecutor from the Vilnius district prosecutor’s office.

The inquiry concerns Facebook posts Žemaitaitis published in 2025, including posts that allegedly defamed Monika Garbačiauskaitė-Budrienė, director-general of Lithuanian National Radio and Television. Prosecutors are also investigating the alleged unlawful disclosure or use of private information and the unlawful collection of information about the private lives of school pupils who took part in protests.

BNS reported that the case also includes an investigation into alleged defamation of Arūnas Gelūnas, director-general of the Lithuanian National Museum of Art, and alleged incitement against a group of people. The investigation followed a Facebook post in which Žemaitaitis called Gelūnas an organiser of alleged coups in the country and a member of a convicted party, and speculated about Gelūnas’s Jewish ancestry.

The case combines several pretrial investigations. No one has been charged, and prosecutors have declined to provide further details, saying that could harm the investigation. Žemaitaitis was questioned as a special witness in mid-September.