Two magistrates from the Chisinau District Court and one from the Chisinau Court of Appeal, referred to justice on a case of influence peddling investigated by NAC

Two magistrates from the Chisinau District Court and one from the Chisinau Court of Appeal are referred to the judiciary on the influence peddling case investigated by the National Anti-corruption Centre (NAC), the Anti-corruption Prosecutor's Office has announced. In November 2023, the Superior Council of the Magistracy issued the agreement for carrying out criminal prosecution actions regarding judges, including arrest and searches. According to the evidence administered by the prosecutors of the Anticorruption Prosecutor's Office, the three judges (two being spouses), acted on the basis of prior understandings, in order to influence and obtain favourable solutions in criminal cases before the courts.

More precisely, in the first episode the two defendants, husband and wife, both judges from the Chisinau District Court and another judge from the Chisinau Court of Appeal, acted together between September and November 2023, with the intention of influencing the judges of the Court of Appeal Chisinau, to apply a milder preventive measure regarding a person under preventive arrest, in exchange for the sum of 3000 euros (approximately 57,500 lei).

In the second episode, the two husband and wife judges accused in this case, between May and June 2023, tried, through another person, to influence the activity of some civil servants from the Public Services Agency, in order to facilitate obtaining a driving license, through violation of the legal provisions, in exchange for the negotiated amount of 800 euros (approximately 15,300 lei).

In the third episode, the defendant judge, on May 29, 2023, claimed to the same person mentioned above, that she has influence over the magistrates of the Chisinau Court of Appeal and can induce them to adopt a favourable solution for a convicted person, on appeals declared against a court decision. For this alleged influence, the judge asked for money, without specifying an exact amount.

At the same time, in order to guarantee the execution of the fine and possible confiscation, the Criminal Assets Recovery Agency of the NAC (CARA) seized the assets owned by the defendants in the amount of approximately 1,550,000 lei.

The defendants did not admit their guilt, the criminal case being sent for substantive examination to the Chisinau Court, Buiucani headquarters.

Note: A person accused of committing a crime shall be presumed innocent until proven guilty by a final court decision.