Georgian citizen Mikheil Zamtaradze was found guilty of stealing a record number of rare books. He was arrested in Belgium and later tried in Vilnius.

"Mikheil Zamtaradze is accused of stealing 19th-century publications together with an organized group. The total value of these publications was 606 thousand euros," announced judge Mindaugas Rezankas at Vilnius City Court.

He admitted to stealing 17 books, including works by Alexander Pushkin and Nikolai Gogol.

During a court hearing in April, Zamtaradze said that the book theft was commissioned by a Russian employee of a Moscow auction house.

According to him, this man also provided him with a fake ID to enter the Lithuanian university, as well as fake copies that were to be placed in the library in place of the stolen works.

Zamtaradze said he smuggled the books through Belarus and received 30,000 euros in cryptocurrency.

The perpetrator worked as part of a group that operated in Lithuania, Poland, France, Switzerland, and Georgia, Lithuanian prosecutors announced.

Zamtaradze was sentenced to 3 years and 4 months in prison.

Source: https://uk.news.yahoo.com/lithuania-sentences-thief-rare-russian-134904192.html?