Officers of the organised-crime unit of the Vilnius county police struck a shadow drug-distribution network on 3 November 2026, the police said the following Monday.[1][2][3][4][5] After searches in Vilnius and Šiauliai, three people suspected of unlawful possession of a very large quantity of narcotic and psychotropic substances were detained.[6][2][3][7][8][9][10][11][5]

Police said they took about 130 kilograms of cannabis, one of the largest cannabis consignments in Lithuania’s history.[6][2][3][8][10][11][5] The searches also turned up about 3.5 kilograms of the psychotropic substance 3-chloromethcathinone, known as 3-CMC or “crystal”, and a combat firearm with ammunition.[6][2][3][9][10][5] The substances were hidden in cars and homes and in prepared caches in woods, where drug handovers are suspected to have taken place.[6][2][3][9][10][11][5]

A court ordered the strictest measure for all three, detention in custody.[6][2][3][9][10][11][5] The pre-trial investigation concerns unlawful possession of a very large quantity of narcotic or psychotropic substances and of firearms and ammunition[6][3][8], which carries 10 to 15 years in prison.[6][3][9] A prosecutor of the organised crime and corruption division of the Vilnius Regional Prosecutor’s Office leads the investigation.[6][3]