In addition, new people contacted the editorial office, whom A. Laukevičius deceived using the same scheme just last week.
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You can find the beginning of the story here.
“Unfortunately, he again did not fulfill his promise. He had promised to return the money to the victims by August 6, but as far as we know, the promised transfers were never made. I am writing not only on my own behalf but also conveying information from other victims. The situation is not subsiding – on the contrary, new outraged people keep appearing online, telling about encountering a very similar scheme,” writes one of the affected tourists, adding that even after publicity and the beginning of law enforcement attention, the situation does not end and new victims keep appearing.
It seems that A. Laukevičius continues his activities – this is confirmed by a letter sent to 15min from Audronė (surname known to the editorial office – note). The woman says she was in Madeira last week.
“I had booked tours (from A. Laukevičius – note) for July 29, 30, and 31 for three people. First, they were postponed, and then the same scheme began – they never took place, no one answers the phone, and emails go unanswered. I lost 435 euros, and they did not return it to me. Thank you for publicizing this person’s actions… Maybe a decision will be made to stop the activity and punish him,” shared another affected Lithuanian woman.
On August 5, another Lithuanian woman currently in Madeira and who booked tours from A. Laukevičius contacted her.
“She asked me if she should still expect the tours to happen. I said definitely not, that she should look for others because she will end up seeing nothing in Madeira,” said Audronė.
According to the victims, the worst part is that until the last minute, already being in Madeira, they are fed promises that the tours will take place. Later – that the money will definitely be returned.
“At first, they told us that the tour dates would be moved to later days due to a rally held in Madeira. It really took place, so we waited calmly. And only when we did not receive news about the new tour date did we start writing and calling A. Laukevičius. We even thought maybe something happened to the person… And indeed – in the evening, we received an English message saying that he was supposedly under medical care, that we should send questions by voice message and the account number because he would return the money…,” detailed the scam scheme last week by a tourist in Madeira who was affected by A. Laukevičius and filed a complaint with the Funchal – Madeira capital police.
According to her, more important than whether she will get the money back is that the illegal tour guide activity is finally stopped: “Maybe finally they will close his agency because complaints date back to 2016, 2022, but he continues to do the same.”
A. Laukevičius continues to claim that everyone will get their money back
On August 6, when contacted via messenger, A. Laukevičius still claimed that “all money will be returned to everyone in the near future.”
According to him, only a small portion of his clients who ordered services encountered problems, i.e., tours were canceled for them, and money has not yet been returned.
“Clients in Madeira faced the same problems because 1-2% of the total tours were canceled due to certain reasons dependent on force majeure circumstances (bad weather in the mountains, transport breakdown, folklore groups unable to attend the evening event),” said the Lithuanian working in Madeira.
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When asked to clarify what victims waiting for refunds should expect, A. Laukevičius explained:
“The refund procedure is set according to calendar dates and order. That is, depending on the tours, when they were canceled, in June or July. If for trips that did not take place – depending on whether the refund is for trips that were supposed to happen or for those canceled at the traveler’s initiative and were to take place in August, September, or October.”
He did not answer the question of how many of his clients are waiting for refunds. Nor did he answer why so many of his clients face “force majeure” situations and do not receive the promised services, even though they have paid.
Receiving threats
As the number of deceived people grows, they are joining a group and claim to seek justice together. A private “Facebook” group currently unites more than 100 members and helps them find each other.
According to Jurgita Makselytė, who administers it, the first post from a victim appeared there. After that, it became clear that there are many more similar cases.
“We helped people unite, share information, and seek legal help. We did not remove posts from victims, although we ourselves received threats of lawsuits from A. Laukevičius. I personally received them as well,” said J. Makselytė, who also organizes tours in Madeira.
“People say they paid for travel packages to Madeira or the Azores and tours in Madeira, but when the services did not take place, they do not get their money back, and Audrius (A. Laukevičius – note) simply blocks them. I know of more than 20-30 such traveler groups, and there are probably more. New victims keep contacting me. Audrius himself administers a “Facebook” group with 18,000 members, so I believe not everything reaches us,” the interlocutor said, adding that she knows a guide who received threats from A. Laukevičius and therefore removed negative posts about his services from her group.
“From several documents submitted by victims I have seen, questions also arise about the data of different companies indicated and cross-checked in contracts. And some victims were sent forged refund receipts and other travel documents,” said J. Makselytė.
She did not hide that this situation indirectly affects her own travel agency, which she created responsibly and honestly, always working only with reliable, verified partners and defending travelers’ interests.
“Unfortunately, some people confuse our activity, although we do not provide guide services and have never been connected with Audrius and his activities. Therefore, it is important for me to help affected travelers and also contribute to stopping this scam as soon as possible, clearly communicating it so that more people do not suffer from it,” said the woman.
She said she is communicating with a lawyer who dealt with a 2016 case related to A. Laukevičius when more than 150 travelers were left without a trip to the Azores. 15min also wrote about this situation earlier.
