In 2013, in the midst of political crisis, the public was informed about several criminal cases opened by law enforcement regarding some ministers or deputy ministers. In 2014, just one criminal case, concerning a minister investigated back then is at the court, its just that since summer until now, there has been no final hearing carried, because every time, prosecutor or judge was missing.

File that is on trial is on the name of former Finance Minister Vyacheslav Negruţă, being the only one where a minister is concerned, started and finished, exclusively by the Prosecutor Corruption (PA ). Negruţă was sent to court in July 2013, beeing accused that favored Pantelei Sandulachi, deputy of the first parliament and party colleague, offering him 400 thousand euros from the state budget according to a court ruling that was not yet final.

Negruţă file without finalized hearings

Found the only one guilty by prosecutors, Vyacheslav Negruţă, who resigned a few days after the case went to court, claims that he got tired from going to trial without seeing any results in the examination of the criminal case in which his name appears. Negruţă’s statements come after that, since summer and so far, in his record no hearing has been brought to an end. Unhappy with the way things go, Negruţă sent, on January 9, 2014, letters to several international institutions and to the leadership of the Republic of Moldova, explaining the situation.

“The first meeting was scheduled for 22nd of October, 2013. Then, the prosecutor who handled the case did not come. In his place came another person, on a proxy, and only the days of the case examination were set. Next meeting, the one on the 16th of December, did not take place, the parties being informed that the judge is ill, and will make a visit to the clinic. The meeting has been postponed to December 20, 2013. Then the parts of the trial were announced by the judge that the meeting would not take place because the prosecutor was present at the General Assembly of Prosecutors, which was taking place on that day. The meeting was again postponed to December 23, 2013, but even then did not occur. This time also, the prosecutor was not present”, reads the message of ex- minister.

“It is outrageous what is happening”

“The next meeting was set only for the end of March 2014, and the case has lasted for nearly two years. Although it’s simple as that. It’s a file that has a strictly political connotation and is winded for so long”, observes Negruţă. He says that, unlike other cases initiated in 2013 in regards to other ministers, his record was the only one prosecuted because, in May 2013, he wrote another letter to the international institutions and the Moldovan leadership, which informed that his case has no progress”. This fact has moved things from place, because, a few days after submitting that letter, I was informed that the file is complete and will be prosecuted,” says Negruţă. “I thought then that things will get back to normal. But, it seems that my expectations were too high”, he says.

” It’s outrageous what’s happening. It is a record of public interest, and now, it’s total lack of interest in it. I am entitled to finality of a file that is creating me discomfort. This case was an element of blackmail, based on completely different reasons… “, says ex- minister, who stated that his intention to write to the state leadership is not intended to make them involve in examining the request, but wants a better information about what is happening in his case, verry publicized when was initiated.

“It was a blur on the hour”

Octavian Iachimovschi, anti-corruption prosecutor who at the court, is representing the prosecution, said that he was not present at the last meeting of December 23, 2013, because “when the schedule was set, there was a vagueness about the time the meeting was to take place and we have started later. It was the preliminary hearing, and the judge was to issue an order vis-a -vis an approach of Mr.Sandulachi and Negruţă. The judge pronounced. We do not delay the examination intentionally. Judge sets the dates, based on the work schedule of the court, not the prosecutor”, notes Iachimovschi.

PA chief, Eduard Harunjen, says she is aware of the letter submitted by Veaceslav Negruţă, but says that “there were moments that I see as objectiv”. „I do not know yet why it was decided that the meetings take place exactly in the days when he could not come. But, the hearings are set by the court. It doesn’t sound like a normal incident, but it doesn’t depend on us. We do not dictate the case to trial. The court determines the date”, says Harunjen .

Focşa without status

Nor in other cases, in which earlier was announced that are listed names of former or current ministers or deputy ministers, things evolve otherwise, but on contrary. Case of former Culture Minister, Boris Focşa, suspected that facilitated the privatization of architectural monuments in the center of Chisinau, which later came in possession of the family Diacov, is still under criminal investigation, the former official without having any status.

Earlier, on May 14, 2013, Focşa was removed from prosecution due to lack of misdemeanor elements in his actions. A few weeks later after the intervention of Corneliu Gurin, the case was resumed. Harunjen claims that the file of Focşa was not stoped then. „It was the order of dismissing prosecution because in the middle, were the three months that prosecutors, by law, had to bring charges. At that stage, prosecutors did not have enough evidences to make the charge. He was acquitted of criminal investigation for that moment. Now Focşa’s file is still investigating. He, however, has no status,”says PA chief.

Usatâi and Gerasim without news

„Nor to Andrei Usatâi (Minister of Health – No) were brought charges. If this thing had happened, the file was already sent to trial”, said Harunjen. Previously, the media published more information about figuration of Usatâi in several criminal cases, but about them today is not known much.”

There are several cases relating to factors of decision in the Ministry of Health, but in them do not appear exactly Usatâi. His name is only in the one with
mortgaging the premises of the Republican Hospital. It is still in work”, says the prosecutor.

Neither in criminal case were originaly it was announced that figures the name of the Deputy Minister of Transport and Road Infrastructure, Boris Gerasim, does not happen much. “With Gerasim there is a folder, but not regarding him, it is on factors of decision for some activities, where we showed that they were particulary
subordinated by him. It came to person from indirect, to direct. There are cases started in fact”, said Harunjen. Gerasimos is presumed to have used the service position to promote a company, managed by one of his close relatives.

Dorin Recean has no file

Also in 2013, the press announced that the Minister of Interior, Dorin Recean would figure in a criminal case related to searches conducted in the offices of some policemen.

Bratunov Cornelius, head exercising prosecution on exceptional cases of the Prosecutor General says that this information does not correspond to the truth and that “we have no such file on Dorin Recean. He does not appear in that file. Regarding him there are not and were not initiated criminal cases. That file exists, but Recean has no status. It is on policy makers in the Ministry, not anyone specific”, he said.

Also in 2013, speculated that criminal file(s ) would also have the Justice Minister, Oleg Efrim, related to irregularities in prisons. The information was contained in an anonymous letter. In July, the Minister said, however, that was not officially informed of it. PG representatives told us that they have no such information. At one point the ion of money for the election campaign of PL, but PA reprename of Environment Minister, George Salaru, figured in the context of a criminal case related to the collectsentatives have told us they do not know about the existence of such a file.

“They are very complicated cases”

“The files on high profile decision makers always lasted very long. These cases are very complicated. Those are documentation files that started from some decisions, and things are not very clear. We do not have such evidence against them that would convince the court inevitable of their guilt. If it was to classify the files, they were already closed. We want to send them to trial, but we are in the process of accumulating evidence„, said the prosecutor Harunjen.

“But, again, they are very complicated cases. I think in all these cases there was a reason to start prosecution. Prosecution does not start immediately for the man to be send to trial, but to acumulate evidence. There are obvious crimes, but here there are more complex things, that start from an order of the Minister, from a decission, an indication. Often we encounter collegial factor, because many decisions are taken by a collegial body, at council gatherings. And in our legislation there is so far no punishment for peer responsibility,” notes chief prosecutor PA. He says that he doesn’t know other files that would involve ministers or deputy ministers.

Victor MOŞNEAG