The officers of the General Territorial Directorate (GTD) North of the NAC and the prosecutors from the Balti Municipal Prosecutor's Office carried out, this morning, searches at the Border Inspection Post (BIP) Otaci of the National Agency for Food Safety (NAFS) in the context of some cases, started on acts of passive corruption. Following the prosecution actions, 6 employees of the NAFS were detained for 72 hours, being suspected of having charged illegal payments from different economic agents for facilitating the transit of goods.

According to the NAC investigations, BIP Otaci employees allegedly demanded and accepted sums of money, in different currencies, from transporters of animal and vegetable products in order not to subject them to sanitary-veterinary checks. Thus, they would have avoided the control over compliance with sanitary-veterinary rules, the requirements regarding food safety and their quality in the process of importing fresh meat, dairy products, confectionery products, as well as other goods, subject to sanitary-veterinary supervision.

Following the searches carried out at the headquarters of the Border Inspection Post (BIP) Otaci of the NAFS, at the homes and in the cars of the 6 suspects, by the officers of the GTD North of the NAC, 35,000 lei, 8,000 hryvnias, mobile phones and records of imported goods.

Currently, criminal prosecution actions are taking place, under the procedural leadership of the Balti Municipal Prosecutor's Office, to document all aspects of the case.

We note, that every person who has been charged shall be presumed innocent until proven guilty according to law.