Lithuanian prosecutors finishing indictment in January 13 case

The prosecutors will need around one month to produce the indictment and then the case will be handed over to court.

All parties involves in the case had until June 12 the opportunity to get acquainted with the case materials.

“Other procedural actions are being taken, needed for this pre-trial investigation that is related to the fact that the suspects are not citizens of the Republic of Lithuania,” Elena Martinonienė, spokeswoman for the Prosecutor General’s Office, told BNS on Monday.

One of the suspects, Russian citizen Yuriy Mel, was detained at Panemunė border checkpoint on the Lithuanian-Russian border on March 12 and was later charged with war crimes and crimes against humanity.

European arrest warrants have been issued for the arrest of the majority of other suspects in the case.

Prosecutors maintain Mel was in one of the tanks that stormed the Vilnius TV tower in the early hours of January 13, 1991.

All in all, 79 citizens of Russia, Ukraine and Belarus are named suspects in the January 13 case, with European arrest warrants issued for their arrest.

Fourteen people were killed during an attempt by the Soviet army and special forces to take over the Vilnius TV Tower on January 13, 1991, and more than 1,000 unarmed civilians were injured.