Lithuania PM seeks Church answers after two priests charged with sex crimes

VILNIUS - Lithuanian Prime Minister Mindaugas Sinkevicius said on Thursday he expected cooperation from the Catholic Church and answers on whether it had taken steps to detect and prevent child sexual abuse, after two priests were charged with sexual offences against children.

"I expect open and constructive cooperation between the Church and law enforcement, transparency, and a readiness to answer not only who may have committed the crimes, but also the vital question of whether sufficient measures were taken in all cases to ensure that potential abuse was detected early, prevented and reported to the responsible authorities," the prime minister posted on Facebook on Thursday.

Sinkevicius said the government must also assess whether legal and institutional mechanisms sufficiently protect children in schools, families, sports, religious and other organisations. He stressed there could be no tolerance for sexual violence against children and that an institution's reputation could not be placed above the safety of a person and a child.

The prime minister added that the case was not about faith or an attack on the Church and its followers. "Respect for the Church cannot mean silence. On the contrary, moral authority mandates the highest standards of responsibility," Sinkevicius said.

The cases of two priests accused of sexual crimes against children have been referred to the courts.

One priest is accused of sexual crimes against 11 minors. According to law enforcement data, 34 criminal episodes were recorded, and the alleged crimes occurred over a 23-year period from 2002 to 2025. The case has been transferred to the Vilnius Regional Court.

The other priest is charged with possession of child pornography. There are no victims in this case, which has been transferred to the Vilnius City District Court. According to data from Delfi and Liteko, the accused are Tadas Svedavicius and Rysardas Peciunas.

The Archdiocese of Vilnius said it learned about the allegations from the prosecutor's office once the pre-trial investigation began. The clerics have been suspended and canonical investigations have been initiated.