Moldovan law enforcers inform about prevention of attempted murder

Chisinau, 8 April /MOLDPRES/ - The law enforcers from Moldova and Ukraine have detained a criminal group which would have intended to commit the assassination of the leader of Moldova’s Democratic Party (PDM), Vlad Plahotniuc. The deputy chief prosecutor of the Prosecutor’s Office for Fighting Organized Crime and Special Causes, Vitalie Busuioc, made statements to this effect at a news conference today.   

According to the prosecutor, 17 persons were members of the group, of whom eight were detained in Moldova and another nine in Ukraine. “Among the suspects detained, there are executors of the murder, intermediaries and communication agents in carrying out the operation. Those who ordered the murder would be two persons, of whom one is in Moscow, Russia, and is a presumed criminal authority in both countries. The murder was to be made on Monday, 10 April. The goal of the suspects was the building of the Global Business Centre or the target’s vehicle. Fires were to be shot and grenades were to be thrown namely in these directions. After committing the crime, the suspects were to leave the country,” Busuioc said.   

He also said that the accused were to receive a sum of 200,000 dollars for the assassination, of which 100,000 has been already paid in advance. “Following searches, four grenade launchers, two pistols, ammunition for pistols, radio stations, camouflage objects, mobile phones, computers, acts and sums of money were found. Prosecution actions take place at present too; therefore, we cannot provide more details, so as not to harm the march of the investigation,” Busuioc noted.  

For his part, the head of the National Investigations Inspectorate, Ion Iachimov, specified that the inspectorate in last December received information from Ukrainian law enforcers about a criminal group which prepares the carrying out of an assassination in Moldova. “After receiving this information, more investigation actions were initiated on this case, carried out jointly with colleagues from Ukraine. One week ago, we received information on the crossing of the border by two executors, who were to commit the murder. Thus, eight suspects were detained in Moldova on 7 April, six of whom are citizens of our country, who hold also other citizenships, and two citizens of Ukraine. At the same time, nine persons were detained in the neighbour state, of whom two fighters who would have participated in forcible actions in Donbas. Almost all suspects have criminal antecedents for exceptionally serious crimes, among which also murder. On this case, we have video and audio evidence proving the intention to commit the murder,” Iachimov said.     

If found guilty, the suspects run the risk of being sentenced to 15-20 years of imprisonment.

The Ministry of Internal Affairs of Ukraine, on 7 April evening, informed about the detaining of an organized criminal group, which was to commit the assassination of businessman Vlad Plahotniuc. According to the ministry’s official webpage, the operation took place in Kiev and Chisinau concomitantly.    

(Reporter A. Plitoc, editor M. Jantovan)