Officers of the National Anti-corruption Centre (NAC), together with prosecutors from Chisinau, detained a man red-handed on suspicion of influence peddling. He allegedly demanded and received illicit means for the issuance of a driving license.

According to preliminary data, the suspect allegedly demanded 2500 euros from a person, claiming that he would have influence over employees of the Transport Registration and Driver Qualification Section in the municipality of Balti within the Public Services Agency (ASP) and that he could determine them to organize the successful passing of the candidate's theoretical and practical test, with the subsequent issuance of the driving license.

The man was detained at the time of receiving the money, and following a body search, the financial means were seized and transferred to the control of anti-corruption officers. The suspect was placed in the NAC Detention Centre for 72 hours.

In this context, the NAC recalls the activation of two telephone lines intended to receive reports on corruption cases and related matters: the Hotline – (+373) 78 710 116 and the National Anti-corruption Line – 0800 55555.

Any person shall be presumed innocent until a final and irrevocable court decision is rendered.
 

The National Anti-corruption Centre (NAC) has presented the weekly report on the activities carried out in the areas of combating and preventing corruption, as well as on the recovery of assets derived from crimes. During the reference period, the NAC and prosecutors carried out searches in Chisinau and Straseni in a case of abuse of office involving the Joint Stock Company "Edilitate". At the same time, anticorruption officers are investigating the theft and concealment of documents for an infrastructure project worth over 8 million lei, involving the former mayor of a locality in Glodeni district.

Regarding the sentences pronounced, the Supreme Court of Justice pronounced an irrevocable decision in a criminal case, investigated by the NAC, concerning the actions of a lawyer, who claimed and received money to influence prosecutors and judges, to obtain favorable solutions in criminal cases. Also, the Chisinau Court, Buiucani headquarters, pronounced several convictions in cases investigated by the NAC. Thus, a former Member of Parliament was sentenced to 7 years and 6 months in prison, and the court ordered the confiscation of over 206 million lei for the benefit of the state. A former mayor of the Băcioi commune received 8 years in prison for passive corruption. The presidents of the Soroca and Cimișlia Territorial Offices of a former political party were sentenced to 5 years in prison, and the confiscation of about 12.7 million lei was ordered. A young man from Făleşti district, investigated for influence peddling when issuing a driver's license, was sentenced to prison.

The Criminal Assets Recovery Agency (CARA) of the NAC seized assets worth over 1.8 million lei. At the same time, previously applied seizures worth about 3.1 million lei were confirmed by court decisions. The agency issued 2 freezing orders on 2 bank accounts in the amount of about 5.6 million lei.

During the reporting period, the criminal investigation officers of the NAC opened 9 files. At the moment, 3 people are in the NAC isolator, and 20 people, targeted in the Centre's files, are detained in penitentiary institutions, being preventively arrested.

In the field of corruption prevention, the Legislation Directorate submitted 7 legislative expertise reports and 4 opinions to the authors. At the same time, 98 integrity records were released, 3 operational analyses were conducted, and 45 calls were received at the national anti-corruption hotline. 1,733 materials were registered in the institution's Chancellery.
 

Officers of the National Anti-corruption Centre (NAC), together with prosecutors from the Chisinau City Prosecutor's Office, are conducting searches today in the capital and Straseni district, as part of a criminal case initiated on the fact of committing the crime of abuse of office.

The investigations target former decision-makers of the Joint Stock Company "Edilitate", who, in the period 2024–2025, allegedly implemented a premeditated criminal plan, in complicity with other persons who are being identified. The purpose of the illegal actions was to defraud the company's assets and take control of it by abusively concluding a civil partnership contract with a legal entity also indirectly managed by them.

As a result of these actions, important assets of the company were illegally transferred to the respective legal entity, including the quarry for extracting the raw limestone deposit in Ghidighici, in a total value of over 4.5 million lei. From the exploitation of the limestone deposit alone, the estimated damage caused to SA "Edilitate", from June 2024 to present, is approximately 1.6 million lei.

The criminal investigation actions are underway under the procedural leadership of the Chisinau City Prosecutor's Office, in order to establish all the persons involved and hold them criminally liable.

According to the law, any person shall be presumed innocent until a final and irrevocable court decision is rendered.

The investigations in this case continue.
 

The Chisinau Court, Buiucani, found a former Member of Parliament guilty of four counts of falsifying reports on the financing of the electoral campaign and the political party, accepting illegal financing from an organized criminal group.

The court ordered, by partial accumulation of the sentences, imprisonment for a term of 7 years and 6 months, with the deprivation of the right to hold public office and to exercise activities related to the accounting and financial organization within political parties for a term of 5 years. Also, to execute the sentence, the preventive measure was applied - preventive arrest, being announced as wanted.

At the same time, the court ordered the special confiscation of over 206 million lei, used and intended for the commission of the crime.

According to the evidence managed by the National Anti-corruption Centre (NAC), jointly with the Anti-corruption Prosecutor's Office (APO) and the Intelligence and Security Service (SIS), the former MP, running on behalf of a political party for the position of mayor of Balti municipality in the local elections of November 21, 2021, allegedly received the amount of 9,752,000 lei from a criminal group. Of this amount, 740,464.50 lei were fictitiously entered into donation forms in the names of 104 individuals, who in reality did not contribute financially. This false data was included in the reports on the financial management of the electoral campaign, by substituting and hiding the identity of the donors, the volume of funds accumulated and used. The reports were subsequently personally signed by the former MP and submitted to the Central Electoral Commission.

At the same time, as vice-president of the Political Party, he would have knowingly accepted the financing of the party in a total amount of 195,518,013 lei - illicit funds used for the maintenance and activity of the party, in order to promote the interests of the organized criminal group.

Of this amount, approximately 8.5 million lei were transferred under the control of the criminal investigation bodies, and another approximately 9 million lei were detected and seized following searches.

The sentence can be appealed to the Central Court of Appeal within 15 days.
Note: The person accused of committing a crime shall be presumed innocent as long as his guilt is not established by a final court decision.
 

The Criminal Asset Recovery Agency (CARA) of the National Anti-corruption Centre (NAC) applied seizures on assets worth over 1.4 million lei last week. These include 2 residential premises, an agricultural land and cash. The assets were frozen in the files of influence peddling, passive corruption and the organization of illegal migration, based on the delegations of the General Directorate for Criminal Investigation (DGUP) of the NAC and the General Inspectorate of Border Police (IGPF) of the MIA.

At the same time, previously applied seizures worth about 4.3 million lei were confirmed by court decisions.