Chisinau-based law court rules to extend warrant of home arrest for former MP by 30 days

Chisinau, 14 February /MOLDPRES/ - The warrant of home arrest for a former lawmaker, Chiril Lucinschi, today was extended by 30 days. Judges of the Buiucani district court of Chisinau took a decision to this effect.

According to the magistrates, the decision can be appealed at the Court of Appeal.

The case prosecutor, Eugen Rurac, said that he had demanded the extension of the warrant of home arrest, given that there was a risk of the defendant’s evading the court. “Chiril Lucinschi holds also the citizenships of other states and there was the risk for him to leave the country, if released under legal restrictions,” Rurac noted.  

For her part, the lawyer of Chiril Lucinschi, Corina Stratan, said the court’s ruling was illegal. “We are discontented with the fact that the magistrates turned down the lawyers’ demand to carry out a legal expertise on the unauthenticated copies of bank operations. We have demanded the carrying out of this expertise, in order to establish whether the national legislation includes the notion of financial circulation, as we know that it does not exist. On 9 February 2018, the amendments to the Criminal Procedure Code entered into force, which see that, if the sides demand the carrying out of a legal expertise, the court is obliged to order to carrying out of the expertise; yet, unfortunately, the provision is not observed,” Stratan said.      

Chiril Lucinschi attended the court session. Lucinschi specified that he was not set to leave Moldova. “I will remain here till I prove that I am not guilty, as I have not committed any offence,” the former MP said.  

Also today, the criminal prosecution was completed and the sides have at their disposal one month to prepare for the court discussions.

The former lawmaker was detained along with three representatives of an economic agent in late last May and they are suspected of money laundering. The file in which Lucinschi is prosecuted was completed with a new count – false testimony, showed by the non-inclusion in his asset declaration and declaration of personal interests of the capacity of financial beneficiary if incomes got from two companies which appear in the money laundering scheme.     

According to prosecutors, the former MP, who is also manager and real beneficiary of the companies Toast Delux SRL (Ltd) and IPA International Project Agency, together with interposed persons, would have committed money laundering in more episodes. If found guilty, Chiril Lucinschi and those three representatives of the economic agent run the risk of being sentenced to up to ten years of imprisonment.    

(Reporter A. Ciobanu, editor L. Alcaza)