Corruption in justice sector: two magistrates from Chisinau Court, one judge from Chisinau Court of Appeal sued at law

Chisinau, 19 November /MOLDPRES/ - The Anticorruption Prosecutor’s Office (PA) has finished the criminal prosecution and sent to court the criminal file on the accusation of three judges. The magistrates are charged with the committing of the offence of influence peddling.    

The criminal file was opened by PA in June 2023. In November 2023, the Superior Council of Magistracy (CSM) issued the agreement for the carrying out of criminal prosecution actions against the judges, including arrest and searches.

According to the evidence, the three judges, of whom two ones are spouses, acted based on preliminary agreements for the influencing and getting of a favourable solution within criminal files pending at courts.    

In the first episode, the two defendants, spouses, both magistrates at the Chisinau Court, and another judge from the Chisinau Court of Appeal, acted together on the period September-November 2023, with intention to influence the judges of the Chisinau Court of Appeal to enforce a milder preventive measure against people under preventive arrest, against a sum of 3,000 euros.  

In another episode, the two judges, during May-June 2023, attempted, through another person, to influence the activity of civil servants of the Public Services Agency, in order to facilitate the getting of a driver’s licence in exchange for a sum of 800 euros.   

In the third episode, the judge, on 29 May 2023, told the same person that she would have influence on the Chisinau Court of Appeal and can prompt them to adopt a friendly solution against a convicted person, on appeals declared against a court ruling. The judge asked for money for this alleged influence, without specifying an exact sum.  

The defendants did not recognize their guilt; the criminal file was sent for examination on the merits at the Chisinau Court, Buiucani headquarters.     

The law sees a punishment in form of fine worth from 100,000 lei to 150,000 lei for the offence of influence peddling or imprisonment for six years for claiming money; in case of the promise of money, the law envisages fine from 100,000 to 150,000 lei or imprisonment for up to three years.   

At the same time, in the same cause, distraint was levied on assets worth 1.5 million lei held by the defendants.