Looking for culprits: Soviet items disappeared from Auska, but were they valuable?

The mayor of Palanga Šarūnas Vaitkus announced in mid-May that when the villa was abandoned by the former tenant, several items were missing here, furthermore, the villa was unprotected, there was a musty smell and dilapidated spaces. Faced with the situation, the Municipality of Palanga went to the Prosecutor’s Office, which initiated an investigation for the possible misappropriation of high-value assets.

The truth about the direction of the research is still difficult to say, since the information evaluated or provided by different institutions is different.

Both sockets and televisions were missing

On Wednesday, Akvilė Kilijonienė, the director of the tourism municipality administration, told members of the Seimas Anti-Corruption Commission that the property went to the Palanga municipality only in February, until then it was Turto bankas. Already during the taking of possession, during the inspection, it was noticed that the elements listed in the annex to the lease were missing. The entire situation was recorded by the former bailiff at the time of admission.

Gintaras Pociūnas, the head of the Ambra Investicijos company, who soon left Anapilin due to COVID-19, also participated in the acceptance-transfer of the building. He told the participants that the personal property had been sold to the lessee, that is, the company he manages, back in 2014, 6 years before the end of the lease.

The tenant explained the lack of property, which according to the contract, furniture, things were removed and the rest belonged to him, because he bought it in 2014.

The company has owned the villa for a decade. The manager also submitted invoices. According to A.Kilijonienė, several goods were not found during the visit: brass bars, stained glass, famine, spare parts for kitchen utensils, etc.

The condition of the building itself was evaluated as satisfactory, it was seen that the current situation requires repair, mold fumes are felt, so it was considered that the villa may be underheated. A room was found demolished, both walls and floors.

“The tenant explained the lack of property that according to the contract – furniture, articles were taken from him and the rest of the articles belong to him, because he bought in 2014 from the state company” Poilsio namai Baltija “(the company owned by” Auska “- red.past.).

Kitchen was bare metal, no furniture, interior details removed, mold damaged walls, bounced wallpaper, rosettes removed, no televisions, no sinks somewhere. Everything has been registered ”, said the head of the administration.

At the meeting it was stated that carpets, paintings and some other goods were valued at one euro or less. A statue was also sold in the courtyard of the villa.

The administration of the municipality of Palanga takes the position that after renting a villa, both the real estate and the furniture are an integral part of the lease, therefore the items could not be sold.

A different version was presented by the Property Bank, the representatives of the Ministries of Economy and Innovation and Finance, and the lawyer representing the company Andrius Chudenkovas.

Soviet items: valuable or useless?

After hearing the commission meeting, A. Chudenkov, a lawyer representing Ambra Investicijos, who has been renting a villa for a decade, rhetorically asked how in 2011 this Soviet villa received overall 5 * hotel status. It is precisely this issue that should be examined by the Anti-Corruption Commission.

“The hotel was equipped with morally worn equipment, Soviet furniture, everything Soviet. The state decided what to do with that property, since it was not used for direct activities, there were 12 morally worn rooms with tables, telephones that were used for communication cross-border government with other leaders of the Soviet republic.

This was the condition of the hotel. It is completely false to say that it was a magical hotel that could compete with the accommodation facilities in Palanga at that time, ”said the lawyer.

The hotel was outfitted with morally worn equipment, Soviet furniture, everything Soviet.

The rents are high, so even with a morally obsolete asset, the company had to generate income by adapting it to its operations. In 2011, the hotel was renovated in agreement with the owner.

“Three photos, trying to summarize: ‘the hotel is devastated’, ‘worse than the barracks’. Do not draw such conclusions from the three photographs. The whole hotel was furnished, with shared rooms, common areas that were adapted for such guests when a family or two used the entire building. The living spaces and lounges have been used by many guests to make the hotel profitable, “said the lawyer.

Of the 12 rooms at that time, the tenant transformed the premises into 30 rooms, which, according to Chudenkov, corresponded to reality and not to the value of the Soviet past.

The lawyer rhetorically asked if Ambra Investicijos had committed a crime by acquiring Soviet teapots, which should be called “chinats”. The state company Poilsio namai Baltija, which managed the village, offered to acquire several assets. The interpretation that the crime was committed is, according to the lawyer, unfounded.

A. Chudenkov was also surprised in speeches that the property is of historical value, although in the past heritage conservationists have also said about the village that it has no items to protect.

It is completely false to say that it was a magical hotel that could compete with the accommodation facilities in Palanga at that time.

“Did he have to follow other standards? Anticipating possible sympathies for the Soviet past, how is it possible to be recognized in the future? It was broken, broken, most of the assets were acquired a long time ago, they could not be used indefinitely. The statements that the entire property has been removed from the building are famous. Perceiving the value is not reasonable. Part of that property has been destroyed and used in general, because it only takes its place when it is irreparable, “said the lawyer.

Property bank: items were not delivered to us

The director of Turto bankas Mindaugas Sinkevičius told the commission members that at that time only real estate and 41 figures were transferred. Such a governmental resolution was prepared by the Ministry of Economy. Both real and personal property could be transferred, but that was the decision. Other items remained in the state-owned Poilsio namai Baltija.

“The real estate bank has never managed it. Baltija had signed two lease contracts with Ambra Investicijos, one for real estate and one for personal property. It is known that Baltija sold part of his personal property to Ambrai in 2014, but Turto bankas was unable to make any decision, the sale of this property was not coordinated, ”said M.Sinkevičius.

Due to defects, according to the manager, no defects were recorded at the time of signing the property transfer deed, and if there were, the municipality should require the tenant to repair or compensate for these defects.

According to its manager, Turto bankas assumes the position that the parts of the contract relating to movable and immovable property were separated, at that time the municipality of Palanga – which are inseparable, as it is called in the “parent” contract, so the list of elements is just an appendix. The items mentioned were valued at 441 thousand at that time. Lieutenant The number of missing items has not yet been estimated.

Š.Vaitkus called the Turto Bank director’s speeches a lie. The mayor rhetorically asked, where were the managers of the Property Bank, who had managed the building for many years and did not take care of its property, without seeing how it was lived?

Did the “flicker” occur?

Aušra Vičkačienė, Head of the State Property Management Department of the Ministry of Finance, told the commission members that the Hotel Auska, which had not been privatized, was later taken over from the state-owned company Poilsio namai Baltija, which also operated a two resorts in Auska remained owned by that company.

“From today’s point of view, the decision to take it with the personal property probably should have been made, but it wasn’t. Today, Turto bankas feels the consequences of certain decisions, they only received photographs, they did not manage the property that became the property of Poilsio namai Baltija during the restructuring. Today, such decisions would not have been made, “said A. Vičkačkienė.

According to the woman, the sale was completed in 2014 and although before the amount was named 400 thousand. Lt, items such as bedspreads, tools, kettles have probably already depreciated significantly.

“The amount was not large, the decisions were made by the management of the company, not the shareholders, not the state institution. Said legal regulation on the sale of the assets of the company, if the value is relatively low ”, commented the manager.

The Deputy Minister of Economy and Innovation, Jovita Neliupšienė, assured that she had found “living witnesses” in the Ministry.

There is also photographic evidence that the building was compliant at the time and in order. According to the Deputy Minister, according to the initial assessment, it was not possible to separate the contracts for real and personal property, but J. Neliupšienė did not hide that this issue should be studied in detail.

The mayor of Palanga, Š.Vaitkus, says again, after having heard from a young businessman who has been renting Villa Auska for two years, that the company bought the property he bought from Ambra Investicija and therefore the accessories lighting and other items mentioned.

Is the state itself to blame?

Ambros’s lawyer outraged Algirdas Stončaitis, chairman of the Anti-Corruption Commission, that if the hotel was in such poor condition and deplorable, the state should feel almost guilty that the company had rented it out. But when renting a villa for ten years, the company had to assess the risks.

Commissioner Andrius Kupčinskas said that it was not surprising that the villa had been stripped naked, it was enough to look at the photos distributed on social media of the “Pudra” festivals held in the village, which were always attended by the police of the complex. The tenant allegedly sought to make money and organized only such events.

Vytautas Bakas, for his part, affirmed that it is the owners – both the municipality of Palanga and the real estate bank that owns the villa – who must sit at a table and represent, at least through the photos, the interests of the property. stripped, prepare a lawsuit and seek justice. As he barked, V. Bak joked that it might turn out that the state had to pay a premium to the company that had owned L. Brezhnev’s villa for ten years.