NAC Synthesis: Convictions in corruption cases, CARA seizures worth 291 million lei and 1 million lei taken over for administration
The National Anti-corruption Centre (NAC) reports for the previous week several activities in the fields of combating corruption and recovering of criminal assets. According to data from the NAC's Criminal Assets Recovery Agency (CARA), assets worth over 290 million lei were seized based on prosecutors' delegations. The seizures took place in criminal cases, managed by several institutions such as the Anti-corruption Prosecutor's Office, PCCOCS, the State Tax Service and four police inspectorates, targeting crimes of money laundering, fraud and abuse of office. Also, seizures previously applied by the CARA, worth 182 million lei, were confirmed by the court. At the same time, financial means in the amount of 205 000 dollars were deposited on the treasury accounts of the NAC, and 1 million lei was taken over for administration.
In the field of combating corruption, the courts pronounced sentences of conviction on corruption, influence peddling and illegal financing cases, managed by the APO and the NAC. The Chisinau Court, Buiucani headquarters, found 4 people guilty of committing the crimes of money laundering in particularly large proportions, fraud in large proportions, as well as obtaining credit through deception, actions resulting in causing material damage estimated at 37 million lei. The court sentenced one of them to a prison sentence of 14 years, another to 10 years in prison, both of whom were deprived of the right to carry out activities in the financial and banking field for a period of 5 years. Another defendant was found guilty of money laundering and sentenced to 5 years in prison. The fourth defendant was found guilty of committing the crime of obtaining credit through deception, while the civil action filed by the representative of SA "Banca de Economii" was partially admitted, and the amount of over 37 million lei was ordered to be collected as damages.
In another case, the Chisinau Court, Buiucani headquarters, found a lawyer guilty of committing the crime of influence peddling. The court ordered a 1-year prison sentence, and he was deprived of the right to practice law for a period of 5 years. Also, the seizure applied during the criminal investigation phase on a real estate asset belonging to the defendant was maintained, and the special confiscation of the amount of 1,000 euros was ordered from the defendant's account for the benefit of the state.
Also, the young man who robbed two girls of almost 500,000 lei, money belonging to a political party, was sentenced to 8 years in prison, 4 of which were suspended. According to the evidence administered by the National Anti-corruption Centre, jointly with the Anti-corruption Prosecutor's Office, the defendant, applying non-dangerous violence to the victims, allegedly openly stole a package containing funds in the amount of 487,450 lei.
During the reporting period, an unofficial courier of a political party, investigated by the NAC and APO, was brought to justice. The defendant, acting according to a criminal scheme and coordinated in advance with the vice-presidents of the political party, acting unofficially as a courier, allegedly sent from a bag containing several bags of money to the secretary and vice-president of the territorial organization of the political party in the Rîșcani sector of Chișinău municipality a bag with the amount of 1 500,000 lei.
Other activities of the NAC, carried out last week, include: completing two operational analyses, sending 16 anti-corruption expert reports and two opinions to the authors, receiving 17 calls to the national anti-corruption hotline, issuing 81 integrity records and registering 1,218 materials in the Centre’s Chancellery. At the moment, 7 people, preventively arrested in NAC files, are being held in penitentiary institutions in the country.