The lawyers for the mayor general of Chisinau municipality Dorin Chirtoaca were removed from the trial. The July 13 hearing, where the court was to examine the defense’s relevant appeal, was put off until July 20. The lawyers said they were removed abusively. The prosecution accuses the lawyers of delaying the examination, IPN reports.

Lawyer Gheorghe Malic told the press that now Dorin Chirtoaca is to look for other lawyers because lawyer Tatiana Iovu was also removed. “Any lawyer who is trying to unveil and ascertain the abuses committed by the prosecutors is removed. Thus, we have a trial that is not so equitable,” stated Gheorghe Malic. According to him, the prosecutors want their own lawyers to be named so that these close their eyes to a number of things.

Prosecutor Dumitru Robu said the complaint of Dorin Chirtoaca’s lawyers about their removal from the trial was to be examined in the hearing. The decision to remove these was taken because the lawyers intentionally created impediments by delaying the examination process and acted against the will of the defendant, who requested to hasten the prosecution. Currently, Dorin Chirtoaca has another lawyer who acts in accordance with the law.

On his Facebook page, the leader of the Liberal Party Mihai Ghimpu wrote that this is one of the methods of examining political cases, while the prosecutor’s order to remove the lawyers is abusive and absolutely illegal. The lawyer’s removal from trial is a serious violation of the right to defense, which is enshrined in the Constitution and the European Convention on Human Rights.

The mayor of Chisinau was arrested on May 25. The next day, he was officially charged with influence peddling in the case of pay parking lots and was placed under house arrest. The mayor pleads not guilty. Dorin Chirtoaca earlier said he only fulfilled his duties and there was no influence peddling in his acts.