This reaction appeared after the Panevėžys District Court dismissed the prosecutor’s and the victim’s representative’s appeals and did not change the first instance court’s decision.
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The young man convicted of raping a 15-year-old girl and causing her health damage was sentenced to three years of imprisonment, but its execution was postponed for two years.
Thus, the man is currently not serving a real prison sentence.
LŠS: the convicted person was not and is not our member
The Lithuanian Riflemen’s Union stated in a released statement that the publicly published information about the case mentioned the convicted person’s alleged membership in the organization, which could have been taken into account when considering favorable circumstances for him.
However, the organization itself denied this.
“We want to emphasize that the convicted person mentioned in the media, Klaidas Sinica, a 20-year-old resident of Anykščiai, was not and is not a member of the Lithuanian Riflemen’s Union,” LŠS announced.
The Riflemen’s Union also expressed a principled position that membership in the organization, even if the person belonged to it, cannot provide any privileges in deciding criminal liability.
“The position of the Lithuanian Riflemen’s Union is principled: it is unacceptable to us that membership in our organization – current or former – would be used to justify a crime or as an argument for a lighter sentence,” the statement said.
The organization emphasized that the name of a rifleman primarily obliges to defend the safety and dignity of other people.
“Neither membership nor previous merits reduce the harm caused to the victim,” LŠS stated.
The Riflemen’s Union also reminded that impeccable reputation requirements are enshrined in the Lithuanian Riflemen’s Union statute.
The court emphasized the young age of the convicted person
The first instance Utena District Court sentenced the man to three years of imprisonment, but postponed its execution for two years.
When deciding on the sentence, the court, among other circumstances, considered that the accused had just turned 18 at the time of the crime and had no prior criminal tendencies.
According to the court’s assessment, applying a real prison sentence under such circumstances would contradict the principle of justice. The court decided that the young man could be deterred from new criminal acts and his positive attitudes formed by postponing the execution of the sentence and applying behavior-changing programs.
The convicted person was also assigned more obligations. Within two months from the finalization of the verdict, he must start working, studying, or register with the Employment Service.
Within six months, the man must start participating in a behavior correction program. For the first six months, from 10 p.m. to 6 a.m., he will also not be allowed to leave home, except for work or study-related reasons.
Throughout the postponement period of the sentence execution, the convicted person is obliged to participate in programs changing violent behavior.
The victim was awarded 5 thousand euros in damages.
The crime was committed in an amusement park
A pre-trial investigation was initiated after the minor’s mother contacted law enforcement and reported a possible sexual crime against her daughter.
During the investigation, data was collected that the young man working in an amusement park in the Anykščiai district, knowing that the park visitor was a minor, used physical violence against her and raped her.
According to the case data, the girl developed post-traumatic stress disorder due to the crime suffered.
During the investigation, data was also collected about violence against another minor park visitor. The court found the man guilty of causing health damage to the minor as well.
The appeal did not change the sentence
The prosecutor and the victim’s representative appealed the first instance verdict, but the Panevėžys District Court dismissed their appeals.
Thus, the decision of the Utena District Court remains in force – a three-year prison sentence, the execution of which was postponed for two years.
This decision had already caused reactions from politicians. It was publicly criticized by the Minister of Social Security and Labour Inga Ruginienė and Member of the European Parliament Virginijus Sinkevičius, who raised questions about the proportionality of such a sentence and public trust in the justice system.
Now, the Lithuanian Riflemen’s Union, which has joined the discussion, primarily seeks to deny the information spread in the public space in its name: the organization claims that K. Sinica was not its member, and membership in LŠS could not be a basis for mitigating responsibility for the crime in any case.
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