Vilnius: A Lithuanian court has sentenced an employee, D. J., of an agricultural machinery company to a suspended two year prison sentence, and a fine of €7,500 for attempting to bribe a public official employed by the Lithuanian Competition Council during the course of a bid rigging investigation.

The sentence, handed down by Vilnius County Court, marked the culmination of a two and a half year investigation by the Special Investigation Service of the Republic of Lithuania after the Chief Expert of the Anti-Competitive Agreements Investigation Division informed the law enforcement authority about a bribe of €14,500 which was offered to him in exchange for a favorable decision in a suspected bid rigging case.

The Court's decision is still subject to appeal.