No Sentence for the Judges in the Laundromat Case Three Years Later

Three years have passed since the detainment of the 16 judges accused of willful issuance of judgments contrary to the law in the infamous Laundromat Case – which saw $20 billion laundered through Moldova’s courts. However, their cases have been transferred from one court to another, and no final sentence has been issued so far. 

Since the end of 2018, the cases have been at the Constitutional Court, which has been notified to rule on the legality of a phrase in the article under which the magistrates are being tried. 

Meanwhile, following some changes in the legislation, the case, in which the judges disputed the decisions of the Superior Council of Magistrates to give the prosecutors consent to initiate the criminal prosecution, was transferred from the Supreme Court of Justice to the Chișinău Court of Appeal. Here, things got bogged down.

In January 2019, the cases of 14 former or current judges involved in money laundering reached the Constitutional Court. Thus, through court decisions, the examination of the cases, which were pending at the Chișinău Court, was suspended. The notices to the Constitutional Court were submitted by the judges’ lawyers during October and November 2018 and were identical: all invoked the constitutionality of the phrase “causing severe consequences” contained in Article 307 of the Criminal Code of the Republic of Moldova – the very article on the basis of which the 14 judges are tried. Although almost a year has passed since then, the Constitutional Court has not issued a decision on these appeals.

Pending for almost a year, in court for two and a half years – no solutions

Representatives of the Constitutional Court told ZdG that the former members of the institution, who resigned in June 2019, had this topic on the agenda for a year but did not issue a decision and the meeting was postponed. Meanwhile, according to Constitutional Court representatives, the new members elected in August need time to study and initiate an investigation on the subject. As a result, criminal cases remain suspended.

Three years after the magistrates’ detention, there has been no resolution on their request to annul the decisions of the Superior Council of Magistrates from September 2016, whereby prosecutors were allowed to initiate criminal proceedings against the judges and arrest them.

After spending two and a half years examining the applications, the Supreme Court of Justice sent the case to the Chișinau Court of Appeal on April 22, 2019. The Supreme Court of Justice concluded that the Court of Appeal is to solve, in the first instance, the administrative litigation against the decisions of the Superior Council of Magistrates. 

The Supreme Court acted based on the new Administrative Code adopted in July 2018, but which entered into force in April 2019.  

Recently, a first hearing was supposed to be held on the case, but it was postponed after some judges decided to abstain from examining the case, said Gheorghe Ulianovschi, a lawyer representing two of the magistrates on trial. Another lawyer involved in this process confirmed that “probably, now, the justice system does not know how to get rid of this case; that is why they keep delaying it.”

Sixteen former and current judges received arrest warrants three years ago

On September 22 and 23, 2016, 16 former and current magistrates received 30-day arrest warrants for their involvement in the Laundromat Case, which saw approximately $20 billion laundered through Moldova’s court system.

Initially, 17 judges were involved in the case. In March 2016, one of the judges died. Ion Gancear signed and issued an ordinance regarding $710 million in june 2013. Shortly after the arrest warrants were issued, Iurie Țurcan, another judge who issued a similar ruling, amounting to $700 million, also passed away. The case against him was closed. 

Another judge under the prosecutors’ investigation, Victor Orândas, managed to leave Moldova. Although he is active on social networks, he has yet to be located.

The remaining 14 cases were sent to the court at the beginning of February 2017 and since then they have been examined at the Chișinău Court, with no sentences issued. In the meantime, five judges have been suspended from their positions by the Superior Council of Magistrates, nine resigned, while 3 have become practicing lawyers. The Superior Council of Magistrates later transferred one of the judges who had formerly been suspended to another justice position. 

Victor Moșneaga