General prosecutor resigns

Former General Prosecutor Algirdas Valantinas.

Former General Prosecutor Algirdas Valantinas.

VILNIUS — Lithuania’s General Prosecutor Algimantas Valantinas turned in a letter of resignation to President Dalia Grybauskaitė Friday morning, which she promptly accepted.

Valantinas’ tenure as the country’s top lawmen had come under increasing scrutiny after prosecutorial mishandling of the Drąsius Kedys case. Valantinas offered to resign in January in light of the uproar.

“This decision is a timely one because of the current situation and circumstances, that the prosecutor’s office can not and should not be able to effectively carry out its functions. Public distrust of the General Prosecutor’s leadership paralyzes all of the prosecutor’s tasks and … interferes with the daily work of the prosecutor’s office,” Grybauskaitė said in a statement to the press.

Valantinas has not commented on this resignation yet, and the president said she would not give futher comment as to why he resigned, saying “let him comment on the cause.”

No candidates to replace Valantinas have been named. He has served as general prosecutor, a position appointed by the president, since 2005.

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