Prosecutors appeal Vilnius court's decision to release MG Baltic vice-president

The Lithuanian Prosecutor General's Office has appealed against a Vilnius court's decision not to extend the remand of MG Baltic Vice-President Raimondas Kurlianskis, a suspect in a political corruption case.

Ruta Trimailoviene, spokeswoman for the Vilnius District Court, told BNS that the prosecutors' appeal was received on Friday and would reach the Vilnius Regional Court next week.

The Vilnius District Court on Tuesday rejected the request from Justas Laucius, the prosecutor in charge of the case, for a two-month extension of the remand period.

Kurlianskis, who is suspected of bribing politicians, was released on bail on the same day. The court put the businessman under house arrest for two months and banned him from having any contact with Eligijus Masiulis, a former leader of the Liberal Movement.

Kurlianskis was detained on May 12 on suspicions of bribery, influence peddling, and unlawful possession of a state secret.

Law enforcement bodies suspect that MG Baltic's vice-president gave a bribe of 106,000 euros to Masiulis, who was then a member of the Seimas and leader of the opposition Liberal Movement, and sought to influence members of the ruling Labour Party via its first vice-chairman, Vytautas Gapsys.

MG Baltic is one of Lithuania's biggest manufacturing, trade, real estate, and media groups.

Kurlianskis is chairman of the management board at the Laisvas ir Nepriklausomas Kanalas Group, the operator of several TV channels, and at Alfa Media, the operator of the Alfa.lt news portal.