Vilnius District Court representative Lina Nemeikaitė told BNS that the decision was made by the Head of the Criminal Cases Division Mindaugas Povilanskas.
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The preventive measure for S. Skvernelis was tightened and intensive supervision was imposed after officers learned that he was meeting with another suspect, with whom he is prohibited from communicating.
Former Prime Minister S. Skvernelis says that the ban on communicating with certain persons was imposed on him only as the pre-trial investigation was nearing its end and until then he was meeting with the suspect.
According to the politician, the additional preventive measure – the ban on communication – could have been imposed in the hope that the meetings would continue and thus it would be possible to record the violation and impose a restraining order.
This is what S. Skvernelis said in an interview published on Monday on the news portal “Delfi”.
The parliamentarian confirmed meeting with the suspect in the same pre-trial investigation, but did not directly name her as his former adviser Agnė Silickienė.
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BNS wrote that S. Skvernelis was charged with bribery.
The law enforcement claims to have grounds to suspect that while serving as Speaker of the Seimas, S. Skvernelis received no less than 51 thousand euros in cash bribes on several occasions for political favor in carrying out powers related to the activities of the Plant Protection Service.
Agnė Silickienė, who previously worked as S. Skvernelis’s adviser, is suspected of being a member of a criminal organized group, taking bribes and possibly acting as an intermediary in passing money to the politician. She was also ordered to wear a restraining order.
In the corruption case of the State Plant Protection Service, charges have also been brought against former conservative Kazys Starkevičius, who resigned from the Seimas, and several other persons.
S. Skvernelis served in the police for many years, has held the position of Chief Commissioner, and before becoming Prime Minister in 2016, he worked as Minister of the Interior.
He categorically denies the charges.
