“OB Holding 1” insists that the case should be heard in an Estonian court, because the company’s head office is in Estonia.
“BaltCap” companies “Žvirgždaičiu energija”, “Nullus” and “Moelta” submitted a lawsuit to the Vilnius District Court against the gambling companies “Olympic Casino Group Baltija” and “OB Holding 1”, demanding the return of financial assets and compensation for damages in the amount of 16.6 million euros .
However, if the court does not satisfy this demand, the companies would jointly demand compensation from Stepukoņi and “Olympic Casino Group Baltija” in an equivalent amount, not exceeding 3.5 million euros, and from “OB Holding 1” – up to 26.05 million euros.
On February 10, Stepukonis was detained at the premises of the Lithuanian Financial Crimes Investigation Service in Vilnius. He was in custody for a short time, but since March 22, the prescribed security measure for him is wearing a GPS device around his leg.
Two pre-trial investigations against Stepukoni are being conducted under the supervision of the European Public Prosecutor’s Office (EPPO). In one of them, Stepukonis is officially suspected of embezzling at least 27 million euros from “BaltCap” infrastructure fund companies. “BaltCap” representatives indicated that around 40 million euros could have disappeared from the fund’s companies.
The second pre-trial investigation is about a case in which the investigation was closed in 2022, but recently reopened. It is related to a EUR 3.9 million transfer to Stepukoņis’s account on the Paysera payment platform, which was received from a Polish company for the sale of shares.
As reported, he spent the stolen funds on gambling and risky investments.
European Delegated Prosecutor Darjus Karčinskis, who oversees the pre-trial investigation in this case, previously announced that Stepukonis “does not completely deny his guilt” but provides “his version of events” which will be verified.
