This challenging year has come to an end. We recall the most notorious crimes and investigations that are significant and will be discussed many more times.
1. Scammers Speak Latvian! And Have Already Swindled 20 Million from People
Every week, fake "police officers," "bank clerks," "officials," and "brokers" are currently deceiving Latvians out of approximately 460,000–500,000 euros. This year, scammers have already taken nearly 20 million euros from their victims, according to figures released at the end of November by representatives of the Cybercrime Prevention Unit of the State Police of Latvia.
For comparison, in the entire year of 2024, scammers swindled 16 million. So they are on track for a record!
What should be particularly emphasized is that their victims are by no means gullible fools. To confirm this, it is enough to refer to the details of a recent international operation during which several Ukrainian scam call centers were dismantled.
How They Operate
As reported by the State Police of Latvia on December 9, in cooperation with colleagues from other countries, the activities of an organized crime network that operated call centers in Dnipro, Kyiv, and Ivano-Frankivsk (Ukraine) were halted.
In this network, 12 citizens of Latvia were also working and were detained – all of them spoke Latvian. Thus, the "language check" that law enforcement had recently recommended to Latvians could not help the victims at all. Employees were motivated in such a way that those who successfully stole money from their victims received up to 7% of the proceeds.
Interim Finish: The co-organizer and five active perpetrators have been detained: "The organizer – a 43-year-old resident of Kyiv region – illegally crossed the state border of Ukraine and is hiding abroad. He has been placed on an international wanted list," reported the Ukrainian police.
2. More than 2,000 Cars Confiscated from Drunk Drivers
One of the most high-profile cases involving drunk drivers: in November, the Riga City Court sentenced former executive director of the 2025 European Basketball Championship Kristaps Janichenoks to one month of actual imprisonment for driving under the influence. Additionally, Janichenoks has been deprived of his driving license for five years.
Furthermore, the court ordered Kristaps Janichenoks to pay a partial cost of the "Ford Mustang Mach-E" vehicle amounting to 25,000 euros to the state. However, this decision has not yet come into force and may be appealed.
The incident occurred as follows: on February 8 of this year, shortly after 16:00, the police received a call to Elizabetes Street, 55 in Riga, where an accident involving Kristaps Janichenoks's car and a parked vehicle took place. No one was injured in the accident. It was established that the driver of the moving vehicle had a blood alcohol concentration of 2.33 per mille.
It should be noted: for three years now, the law in Latvia has allowed the confiscation of vehicles from drunk drivers. During this time, more than two thousand vehicles have been seized.
Some of these cars go to auctions in Latvia, while others are sent as gifts to Ukraine.
The profile of a drunk driver has not changed over the years: it is predominantly a man aged between 30 and 50, and in many cases, driving is related to his main job.
3. The Head of Valmiera County Accused of Embezzling 671,000 Euros!
The investigation into the case of five officials and employees of the Valmiera County municipality, including Mayor Janis Baiks, has been completed.
They are suspected of large-scale fraud and other criminal offenses aimed at attracting more money from the European Regional Development Fund (ERAF) and the state budget of Latvia than was legally allowed.
The head of the Valmiera municipality himself denied everything in conversations with journalists earlier.
The process was initiated by the European Public Prosecutor's Office (EPPO) - the first supranational, independent prosecutor's office of the European Union that deals with crimes against the EU budget. For the investigation, the EPPO transferred the case to the Latvian Bureau for Prevention and Combating Corruption (KNAB).
What the investigation discovered, in particular, is that "acting in a group with prior conspiracy, the officials allegedly fraudulently obtained 671,299.69 euros from ERAF and the state budget of Latvia," reported KNAB.
But that's not all. The Valmiera County municipality also submitted requests for the payment of 2,372,713.31 euros – and this money was not paid for reasons beyond the control of local authorities, as noted by KNAB.
It should also be noted: the investigation in Valmiera is by no means the only recent scandal related to cases under the auspices of EPPO.
The Chapter of Orders in Latvia recently decided to strip the Cross of Recognition from the head of the farm Vecsiljāņi, Juris Sprukulis, who was convicted of embezzling EU funds.
The fraud concerned two agricultural development projects that were implemented in 2019–2020 and 2022–2023 and administered by the Rural Support Service. Sprukulis was fined 75,480 euros, and damages of 425,500 euros will be recovered from the Vecsiljāņi farm.
4. The Case of Judge Silinēviča: Embezzlement of 137,000 Euros
The prosecutor's office has submitted a criminal case for fraud to the court, which involves: judge of the Riga District Court Inese Silinēviča, a judge's assistant, and an individual not associated with the court.
According to the structure, a scheme was created for fictitious employment, through which 137,000 euros were embezzled from the budget of the Judicial Administration.
According to the indictment, at the end of 2006, the assistant judge of the district court offered another individual to organize fictitious employment relationships with a specific court. The latter, understanding that there would be no work obligations to fulfill, but tax payments would be made for the supposedly performed work, agreed, as well as to transfer the received salary to the judge's assistant.
In total, according to the prosecutor's office, the scheme existed from 2006 to 2023, and during this time, a total of 137,371.68 euros were embezzled from the budgetary funds of the Judicial Administration.
What cannot be overlooked in this context is that Judge Silinēviča had previously considered several high-profile cases, including one of the Latvenergo cases, as well as one of the corruption cases involving officials of the Riga Central Market.
5. Thieves of a Watch Store in Vecā Riga Detained
In Finland, three out of four members of a group of "travelers" across Europe, who committed an armed robbery of an exclusive store in Riga in April 2025, were detained, stealing around 80 watches in just a few minutes. The damage was estimated at about 690,000 euros.
The investigation believes that the raid was carried out by a group of young Serbs under the age of 30, who were already preparing for a similar attack in Helsinki. The robbers had already obtained a pistol, a sledgehammer, and axes.
The police arrested the suspects on Tuesday, October 7, 2025. Among other things, black clothing, shoes, gloves, and three dark duffel bags, packed separately for each suspect, as well as camouflage hoods and one wig were found in their lockers and luggage. Judging by the seized items, each suspect was equipped with the necessary gear and items according to their previously agreed roles.
