Radu Starinschi, former chief of Criminal Police at Central Police Station, sentenced to two years of imprisonment, is still at liberty. He will remain free, at least, another month, until motivated delivery of conviction, although the decisions of Court of Appeal are enforceable.

On Tuesday, May 13, 2014, a panel of judges from the Court of Appeals (CA) Chisinau, consisting of Alexander Spac, Dina Rotarciuc and Nikifor Corokii, last two, until recently, members of the Superior Council of Magistracy (SCM), have decided conviction of policeman Radu Starinschi to two years of imprisonment, with deprivation of the right to occupy functions at the Ministry of Internal Affairs (MIA) for a period of two years. Under the law, CA ruling is an enforceable one. However, he was not handcuffed in the courtroom, magistrates indicating in the decission that the punishment is to be calculated from the time of defendant’s arrest.

The next day, the victim had the phone disconnected

Sergiu Cretu claims he went to the meeting scheduled at CA Chisinau for 09.30  without much hope that Radu Starinschi will be convicted. He says that, according to the behavior of the lawman, he neither expected such a decision. “Before the trial he was laughing, even making fun of me. He said that I was usually wearing a suit, but today I came differently. Then, after the decision, he could not believe what happened. He was repeating stunned: Two years, two years … “, says Sergiu. ZdG set a meeting with him for Wednesday, May 14, just that, on this day, after initially not answering the phone, Sergiu had the phone disconnected all the time.

“Somewhere in the depths of consciousness, I hoped exactly for such a decision. The fact that three times we’ve been thrown to the Court of Appeal, where we went through various procedures, including incorrect ones, I was thinking that eventually he will be aquited. But, hope dies last, and in our case it did not die … The way this college held hearings, noone did. They respected legal procedure, listened to all parties. Examined as must be examined a file, without abuse and intimidation”, sais Natalia Molosag, lawyer of Sergiu Cretu. “I hope that, ultimately, the decision remains in force at the Supreme Court of Justice (SCJ), and then, we will attempt, nationally, to rehabilitate Sergiu, including moral damage caused to him”, he says.

Indictment: Dozens of policeman’s hits

Prosecutors asked for Radu Starinschi, who during the events of April 2009 held the function of Chief of Center Crime Police Station, three years of imprisonment and prohibition to occupy functions at MIA over a similar period. According to the indictment, Starinschi is accused that, “having special degree – police captain, being chief and a person with responsible position, committed intentional acts of torture on Sergiu Cretu. According to the same document, Starinschi pulled Sergiu from the cell, in order to escort him to the office, and during this time, to intimidate him, he applied about 10 blows with the fist on the head. Reaching the fifth floor in his office no. 505, located in the CPS Center, Starinschi, aiming to cause physical pain and mental suffering, to obtain confessions of Cretu’s participation in mass disorders in the Square, continued violence, accompanied by acts of torture”.

The indictment also says that Starinschi, without establishing grounds and circumstances in which Cretu was detained, has applied him a kick in the neck, five kicks with the leg in the abdomen and around 10-15 punches in the head even if, during the maltreatment, Sergiu had pain in left hand. The document also states that Starinschi, acting intentionally, to worsening physical pain and intimidation of the victim, applied about 10 kickings in the upper left hand. “As a result of violent actions, the injured party has been caused physical pain, and acts of torture, which led to the displacement of the bone fragments and distress – in the form of “post-traumatic stress disorder. Anxious-depressive syndrome”, also reads the document of prosecutors.

File, three times at Appeal

However, Center Court, in June 2011, Judge Vladimir Brasoveanu, acquitted the policeman, on the grounds that the act was not committed by him. In April 2012, at CA Chisinau, that sentence was quashed, and the policeman – sentenced to two years of imprisonment, suspended. In November, of the same year, the Supreme Court sent the case for retrial. In April 2013, another panel from the Appeal was mantaining the sentence of acquittal issued by judge Brasoveanu two years earlier. Magistrates from Appeals noted that “there is no characteristic sign of torture, or there is not shown a causal link between the injuries detected at injured party and facts alleged to Starinschi Radu. Also, it was not established under any form the participation of defendant Starinschi in committing charged offences, because, according to the statements of victim, he was dressed in police uniform, when it was established with certainty that Starinschi, as part of the criminal police, was not wearing a uniform”.

At the end of 2013, five judges from the Supreme Court sent the case back to the CA Chisinau, detecting in the acquittal sentence several errors. Here, the state prosecution was represented by the attorney of the Court of Appeal, Radu Sali, who managed to convince the magistrates, Spac, Corochii and Rotarciuc, in Starinschi’s guilt . “I just honored my obligations, as required by law. My colleagues, who previously worked on the case, they probably did a much larger volume of work and perhaps more merits”, said the prosecutor. According to statistics of the General Prosecutor, in files of April 7, Starinschi is only the third policemen sentenced to real prison.

“You know how laws are made here“

However, although the decision of CA Chisinau is, by law, enforceable, neither after 48 hours from issuance, it was not applied, Radu Starinschi being at liberty. Representatives from the Department of Penitentiary Institutions (DPI) told us that, on Wednesday, Starinschi had not been incarcerated. According to the procedure, this will happen only after the decision of judges will be drawn and rendered public, which will only occur on June 12, after a month. “Then, the judges from the Appeal will send the file to the first instance, namely, to the Central Court, which will send to police forces the decision to implement the punishment. This is the procedure”, explained the DPI’s representative.

The procedure was also confirmed by representatives of the Police Inspectorate Botanica (IPB), the district where lives Starinschi. “That’s why it’s weird, because its a law. You know how laws are made here. It is clear that there is a risk that he would flee. If that happens, he will be given in search”, told us a head of IPB. “It is strange that the court have not decided that he is taken directly from the courtroom”, opines a prosecutor.

The convict was away at work

To clarify things, we tried to talk with the judges who made the decision, but – without success. Registrar of Dinah Rotarciuc has confirmed, however, that the conviction will be enforced only after the motivated delivery of conviction, which will be held next month. “Code of Criminal Procedure provides that the decision is enforceable upon adoption, not from the moment of its argumented delivery. They cling to some stuff which do not correctly interpret”, says Natalia Molosag, lawyer of Cretu. However, other lawyers with whom we spoke explained to us that, indeed, the decision will be executed after motivated delivery of conviction. “That’s the law. The procedure will take more than a month”, says a lawyer. With reference to the file, he claims that the limitation period was to be applied, and the file had to be stopped.

ZdG tried to talk with Radu Starinschi. Initially, Laura Urschi, his lawyer and the daughter of humorist George Urschi, declined to discuss about her client’s conviction. “In connection with the case you are interested, I declare that I have a confidentiality clause and have no right to talk about it”. Then, I called the place of residence of Starinschi. A lady answered, his mother in law, who told us that he went to work in the morning and she does not know his coordinates. At Center Police Inspectorate we were informed that Starinschi is no longer working there, while some sources claim that he would work in the security service of a shop. In 2011, when he was acquitted, Starinschi was declaring himself not guilty and was saying that the accusation that was made would be unreasonable, unlawful and without legal basis.

Victor MOSNEAG