After receiving letters demanding support, the businesses are forced to donate money to the police.

The money is transferred to a special account: nr. 420500349230100 at the Savings Bank. During November-December 2007, dozens of economic agents transferred ‘aid’ of around 150,000 lei. It has been concluded that, of this sum of money, only one-twentieth (6,750 lei) was cashed without any reason.

 

Pharaoh Nightclub, La Roma Club, Felicia Drugstore network, bowling alleys, grocery stores, the Lottery of Moldova, sauna owners and others have transferred to this account sums between 150-1,500 lei to ‘sponsor’ the police.

Sponsorship with legal papers

On November 20 2007, Virim-Impex LLC gave the police the sum of 500 lei. The transfer was made after an official letter was sent by the police station. After the money had been picked up, representatives of the police delivered another letter in which they confirmed that 500 lei was received. Shortly after, Virim-Impex received another letter, this time it was a ‘thank you’ note.

The store Ciocana JSC sponsored the police station as well with 1,500 lei. When asked whether it was an action carried out willingly, Veaceslav Pulber, its manager replied: “I did it on my own will based on the demands of the station. They were the ones that sent letters asking for help. You know how it is here, they are complaining that they are not properly financed”; Pulber believes that the 1,500 lei that Ciocana JSC donated to them will be enough for a computer monitor.

Nicolai Pavlicenco, head of Colins LLC, owner of a sauna and a snack bar transferred 150 lei for repairs at the police station.

Aside from dozens of retirees it helps by giving each of them 100 lei per month, Promptagent LLC helps state institutions as well. chief accountant of Promtagent Ltd, Nelly Pautenco, remembered the transfer of money to the police station, as well as to other state authorities: “in order to provide them with help, letters with stamps and signatures are needed,” the chief accountant told us. The letter which came from the police station was the same – with stamps and signatures.

Pharaoh Nightclub offered 500 lei without any letter or signature. Only the House of Wine LLC representatives do not remember any sponsorship offered to the police station.

 

“We neither sponsor nor offer financial support. There must be some mistake,” a House of Wine representatives told us loud and clear, despite their name being included on a list of economic agents taht showed they had donated 1,000 lei to the police.

Police commissars have no idea about it

We asked the central police commissar, Eugen Axentiev, to tell us what he needed the sponsorship from the economic agents for and what it is used for. The commissar, however, refused to report the financial situation of the institution he represents.

Iacob Gumenita, deputy commissar, said he has no idea about such sponsorship. “We don’t ask for sponsorship,” Gumenita added. Even if the entire list of economic agents that have offered sums of 150 and 1,500 lei actually does exist, he affirmed: “No one is helping us financially. Let them prove it if it’s true.” Gumenita assured us that the institution he represents does not use such methods.

Immediately after discussions with the commissar, who denied the fact that he might have requested financial support, we contacted the police station’s accountants, introducing ourselves as an economic agent willing to sponsor them. The people from the accountancy were very kind, offering us the bank account to which we could make the transfer to account nr. 420500349230100 at the Savings Bank. We asked about the letter, which could legally prove that we have transferred the money upon a request from the police station. We were clearly told by the employees of the accountancy that we could receive such a letter from “the one we are working with.”

Afterwards, when asked by Ziarul de Gardă to say how the money of economic agents is being spent, the accountant of the central police station replied: “It’s not your business. We are a closed institution and we ourselves decide how to spend the money.”

How much can you donate to the police?

We remind you that, on February 7 2008, Ziarul de Gardă published the article “Corruption in the Form of Financial Support at the Central Police Station.” During the winter holidays and on the eve of National Police Day, in order to get permission to work after 9 p.m., every economic agent that had longer working hours or worked 24 hours, like Internet cafés or entertainment clubs, had to obtain the Chişinău deputy mayor’s approval and the preliminary approval of the sector town halls, as well as the ‘permission’ of the central police station. On December 27 the Municipal Council decided that the economic agents no longer needed that police station’s permission. However, one of our sources told us that, in this case, “the one who asked for money” was Vasile Olaru, the assistant to the head of the Public Order Office from within the central police station. We called him and introduced ourselves as economic agents, asking for ‘permission’ for longer working hours or being able to open for 24 hours.

At first, Olaru said that he needed to come “to visit.” We told him that we had five computers. “It will cost you a lot!” he said, “a trip to the seaside,” he specified. Suddenly, he told us to go to the City Hall, but afterwards he changed his mind and invited us, with all our documents to the police station on 6 Tighina Street. The same day we went to the police station to ‘fix’ permission with Deputy Olaru. There, the police station representative admitted that, due to a decision by the Chişinău Municipal Council, they had no right anymore to issue permission. “We will not leave things like that, we will contradict this decision!”, Olaru told us, very sure of the actions the police station had to take. We asked him if he knew how much this paperwork would cost at the City Hall. “I don’t know. In our case, you paid as much as you could,” he added with much sorrow.

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