Moldovan Anticorruption Prosecutor's Office instructs not to start criminal prosecution based on pictures from headquarters of Democratic Party

Chisinau, 6 March /MOLDPRES/ - The Anticorruption Prosecutor’s Office (PA) has instructed the non-starting of criminal prosecution on the fact of alleged illegal financing of the Party of Socialists (PSRM), on grounds that the deed does not meet the constitutive elements of an offence.    

A press release issued by the institution reads that, on 8 June 2019, PA took note, based on video recordings with hidden camera from the negotiations held between Igor Dodon and Vladimir Plahotniuc at the headquarters of the Moldovan Democratic Party (PDM) one day earlier, broadcast by some TV channels.   

The refusal of by the Prosecutor Office to start the criminal prosecution was based on: findings of the investigations carried out by the Service for the Prevention and Combating of Money Laundering, which did not identify suspect financial transactions of the Party of Socialists (PSRM), as well as of private people and legal entities affiliated to this political party; audit report on PSRM’s financial management for the 2016, 2017 and 2018 years, which shows that the incomes and expenses made are correctly classified and do not have irregularities; annual reports, taken from the Central Electoral Commission, on the financial management of the PSRM political party, reports on the audit of the political party and reports on the financing of the electoral campaigns, unveiled by the electoral contender on the period 01.01.2018 – 01.05.2019.   

Also, all persons alleged to have information on the object of the investigations have been heard on this case and the fact of illegal financing of the political party was not confirmed.  

Thus, during the investigations, decision-makers did not produce evidence serving for the finding out of a reasonable suspicion as to the committing of this or another offence.  

At the same time, PA informed that it would continue criminal prosecution actions on a file opened on alleged deeds of money laundering, in which people affiliated to PSRM would be involved. The file was opened in 2016 and no work has been carried out on it for more than three years.