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Construction site of the multifunctional wellness center Lazdynai. Photo by Judita Grigelytė (VŽ).
The Financial Crimes Investigation Service (FNTT) is investigating the circumstances of the reconstruction of the Vilnius Lazdynai basin.
Added a comment from other rebuilding contractors.
The Attorney General’s Office informed VŽ that the pre-trial investigation was being carried out in accordance with article 4 of the Penal Code.
It is being investigated whether fraud, waste, abuse and falsification of documents may have been committed during the reconstruction.
Authorities say they can’t release any more information yet, so it’s unclear if anyone has been charged.
The preliminary investigation is carried out by the FNTT and is led by a prosecutor from the specialized unit of the Vilnius Regional Prosecutor’s Office.
VŽ recalls that the reconstruction of the Lazdynai basin has been halted due to the bankruptcy of the main contractor, UAB Active Construction Management (formerly Irdaiva).
The Vilnius City Municipality and other contractors involved in the reconstruction have stated that they intend to apply to law enforcement for the main contractor’s actions. It is said that some of the work done was not actually done. The reconstruction and the work carried out were supervised by the municipal company Vilnius Development Company.
In addition to Irdaiva, UAB Axis Power, UAB Mitnija, UAB HSC Baltic and AB Montuotojas also participated in the Lazdynai Basin Reconstruction Consortium. These companies refused to continue working after the partner left.
As a result, the municipality terminated the contract with them and, following the appeal court’s decision, included the companies on the list of unreliable suppliers.
HSC Baltic VŽ commented that he was convinced that possible criminal acts would be clarified during the pre-trial investigation.
“A significant amount of the project funds was paid to the lead partner without complying with the terms of the contract and due to lack of funds it was no longer possible to complete the Lazdyn Basin project, no matter how the partners wanted.”
A subsequent report from the consortium companies claims that they have become “hostages of the bankrupt prime contractor and the municipality’s unprofessional, non-transparent and potentially criminal activities.”
“We believe that the investigation will reveal all the circumstances. We have reason to suspect that including us on the list of unreliable suppliers is revenge for refusing to take on a non-transparent and unprofessional project and covering up possible fraud, waste of property and abuse” , states the comment sent to VŽ.
The tender for the new Lazdynai basin contractor was announced by the municipality in 2020. in December 2021. it announced in January that it had received requests from 3 suppliers and expects to sign contracts within 2-3 months. The municipality intends to recover the possible price difference from the initial estimate of the consortium members.
Reconstruction of the Lazdynai Basin started in 2017. July and was due to be completed in a year and a half. The total value of the project initially amounted to 21.8 million. EUR.
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