FORMER PRIME MINISTER VLAD FILAT ACQUITTED IN MONEY LAUNDERING CASE

Former Prime Minister Vlad Filat has been acquitted in a criminal case of money laundering. As INFOTAG reports, this decision was made on Tuesday by the court of Buiucani sector of Chisinau.

Prosecutors alleged that in 2013, Vlad Filat received 12,847,902 lei illegally from Banca de Economii. He conducted a series of transactions through his relative Ion Rusu, who later died. According to the prosecution, through companies managed by Ion Rusu, the former prime minister converted and transferred the money received to the account of a non-resident company to pay for campaign consulting services for the parliamentary elections.

The prosecutor in the case asked to apply to the former prime minister a 7-year imprisonment and a fine of 12.8 million lei, equivalent to the amount that was the object of money laundering. The case has been pending since January 2019 and has gone through several periods of stagnation. Prosecutors said they disagree with the court's verdict and intend to challenge it at the Court of Appeal.

Vlad Filat believes that the case was fabricated by prosecutors at the behest of his political opponent, the former leader of the Democratic Party, Vlad Plahotniuc.