In this case, A. Kandrotas, nicknamed Celofanas, was sentenced to one year of imprisonment, while A. Lobov was sentenced to 10 months of imprisonment, with the execution of the sentence postponed for one and a half years.
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Appeals requested acquittal.
The chairwoman of the district court panel, Giedrė Telksnienė, announced a new verdict on Friday for A. Kandrotas and A. Lobov, who were convicted by the district court for inciting hatred against the former Freedom Party chairman Tomas Vytautas Raskevičius due to his sexual orientation and for disturbing public order.
For some of the crimes charged against them, the appellate court acquitted them and mitigated the sentences. By the district court’s verdict, which took effect immediately, A. Kandrotas was sentenced to eight months of imprisonment, while A. Lobov was sentenced to six months of imprisonment, with the execution of the sentence postponed for one and a half years, and a fine of 3,766 euros.
A. Kandrotas and A. Lobov were acquitted regarding the events that took place two years ago in the Vilnius district court, when they mocked then-member of parliament T. V. Raskevičius during the hearing because of his sexual orientation.
The district court panel believed that their behavior did not incite hatred and did not violate public order.
According to Judge G. Telksnienė, although A. Kandrotas’s and A. Lobov’s statements contradicted morality, they were expressed in the form of dialogue and humor.
“It did not reach such a level of danger as to incur criminal liability,” explained the panel chairwoman.
The panel, after reviewing video recordings from the district court, decided that public order was also not violated.
“No one complained about the violation of public order, the court’s work was not disrupted,” explained G. Telksnienė when clarifying the reasons for the verdict.
In the panel’s opinion, such behavior could be assessed administratively.
However, the court did not acquit A. Kandrotas and A. Lobov for posts on social networks. The panel assessed these actions as incitement to hatred.
A. Kandrotas is evading imprisonment, sentenced in another case, abroad. At the end of June, a European arrest warrant was issued for him. At the beginning of August, the Ministry of Justice officially applied to Belarus for the extradition of the convicted A. Kandrotas to Lithuania.
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Previously, the accused stated in court that they do not regret their actions. In the autumn of 2024, they mocked T. V. Raskevičius in court, where a case was being heard regarding the politician kissing A. Kandrotas.
As BNS reported earlier, data collected during the pre-trial investigation, according to law enforcement, reasonably suggest that on September 20 two years ago, during a hearing at the Vilnius district court, A. Kandrotas, participating remotely, and A. Lobov, attending as an observer, publicly mocked then-member of parliament T. V. Raskevičius, incited hatred and provoked discrimination due to the politician’s sexual orientation, and demonstrated disrespect to others with insolent behavior.
Moreover, according to the prosecution, A. Kandrotas publicly mocked T. V. Raskevičius after subsequent hearings as well, and videos of these statements were distributed on the social network “Facebook.”
Two years ago in autumn, A. Lobov posted entries on his social network “Facebook” that mocked, disparaged, and incited hatred against LGBTIQ persons and T. V. Raskevičius.
The then Freedom Party chairwoman Aušrinė Armonaitė and Member of the European Parliament Dainius Žalimas appealed to the prosecution regarding the actions of A. Kandrotas-Celofanas and A. Lobov.
BNS reported that the Vilnius city district court dismissed the lawsuit in which A. Kandrotas demanded 100 euros in non-pecuniary damages from T. V. Raskevičius for the kiss and reimbursement of litigation costs.
At that time, the court decided that A. Kandrotas must reimburse T. V. Raskevičius 2,800 euros in court costs.
The conflict between A. Kandrotas and T. V. Raskevičius occurred in the summer of 2023, when LGBTIQ marches took place in Vilnius on Gediminas Avenue. A. Kandrotas held a protest action in Cathedral Square. When he approached T. V. Raskevičius wanting to take a photo together, the latter kissed him.
After that, A. Kandrotas turned to the police requesting to start a pre-trial investigation for sexual harassment. The police did not start an investigation. Therefore, A. Kandrotas filed a civil lawsuit.
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