Riga, Nov 24, (dpa/GNA) – A court in Lithuania has sentenced a Ukrainian man to three years and four months in prison for an arson attack on an Ikea furniture store in Vilnius.
The court found it proven that the man, who was still a minor at the time of the incident, carried out the attack in May 2024 and found him guilty of preparing and carrying out terrorist acts.
He was also charged with the illegal possession of explosives and the acquisition of special knowledge for terrorist purposes, Lithuanian media reported on Monday, citing the presiding judge.
The convicted man acted in the interests of the Russian military intelligence service, said prosecutor Tomas Uldukis after the verdict was announced in Vilnius.
The man is also said to have planned further attacks in another city in the Baltic EU and NATO country and in neighbouring Latvia.
The fire in the furniture store broke out on the night of May 9, 2024. According to court records, it was caused by a time-delayed explosive device that the convicted man had placed there the day before. The fire was quickly discovered and brought under control, and no one was injured.
According to the public prosecutor’s office, the arson attack was carried out by a terrorist organization and the crime was allegedly ordered by Russian secret services. The group’s activities were coordinated via social media with the help of encrypted messages.
In the course of the investigation into the arson attack in Vilnius, it was established that the direct perpetrators were two Ukrainian citizens. The other suspect was arrested in Poland.
GNA