Marijampolė Mayor P. Isoda to Lose Mandate Over Falsified Expense Documents
The Court of Appeal has convicted Marijampolė Mayor Povilas Isoda of document falsification, and the Central Electoral Commission will terminate his mandate on Thursday.
Marijampolė Mayor P. Isoda to Lose Mandate Over Falsified Expense Documents
On Thursday, the Central Electoral Commission (VRK) will annul the mandate of Marijampolė Mayor Povilas Isoda. This step follows a Court of Appeal verdict finding the politician guilty in the so-called "receipts" case.
The court imposed a fine of ten thousand euros on the convicted defendant and banned him from holding elective or appointed positions for three years in state, municipal, company and non-governmental organisation structures. The current Electoral Code provides that following a final conviction, a mayor's functions must be suspended.
The judges established that during the 2019–2023 term, the politician submitted 37 falsified expense reports. These contained data that did not correspond to reality regarding transport fuel, mobile communications and internet expenses. As a result, he unlawfully gained almost two and a half thousand euros in benefits.
The convicted man claims he disagrees with the decision and intends to appeal it. Previously, he argued that receipts from colleagues were mixed up at the party headquarters, so he could have inadvertently taken documents that were not his own. However, the court decided that the regular submission of receipts paid for with other people's payment cards to accounting was a deliberate method of claiming compensation for fuel rather than a simple human error.
The municipal council will decide on the appointment of a temporary mayor next Monday. According to legal acts, when a mayor loses his mandate prematurely, his functions are taken over by a council member elected by majority vote at a council session. Since fewer than twelve months remain until the next municipal elections, new mayoral elections will not be announced. The temporary head will serve until the elections scheduled for February or March 2027.
P. Isoda has headed the municipality since 2019.
Information published by 15min.lt.
Source: 15min