The accusations made against citizen Oleg Pruteanu on several counts, which were presented by the police in a news conference on October 4, are false, says the man’s lawyer Ala Raievski. In a news conference at IPN, Ala Raievschi said that in virtue of circumstances as she is not only the lawyer for Oleg Pruteanu, but also his mother-in-law, during the last five years she thoroughly analyzed and verified all the information that was provided by the police and disseminated by the media, according to which Oleg Pruteanu is a thief-in-law and the leader of a criminal group. The lawyer noted she possesses incontestable evidence that her son-in-law was slandered.
“What is most important is that all the dirty things disseminated by the media are not true by far and Oleg Pruteanu’s daughter should know this and should not be blamed,” stated Ala Raievschi, noting she established that employees of the Ministry of the Interior, in the absence of conclusive evidence, furnished the press with information to make this case resonant. In the October 4 conference, it was said that Oleg Pruteanu has luxury cars and a house, but this is not true, according to the lawyer. The confiscation report stipulates only two computers and a security system for children. The goods that they allegedly confiscated do not exist. The information that Pruteanu had been searched for a period is also not true as Oleg Pruteanu presented himself at all the hearings at the Appeals Court in the case of Veretco, being followed by the authorities during five years. Moreover, in the period he was almost permanently on Moldova’s territory and this fact can be easily determined by the authorities.
The lawyer stated that a news item broadcast on October 1 informed that there was arrested Oleg Pruteanu, who was presented as alias Borman, the head of a criminal group. A portal published the information before the arrest. It is not clear why they should have made the arrest at such a late hour, inside a shop where there were many people, with masked men beating him and putting him down. Oleg Pruteanu was hit brutally and was all in blood. At bout 9pm, he was taken home, where there were his wife and minor daughter. “In this connection, I want to say that Oleg Pruteanu wasn’t hiding and the police knew this well and a legal citation was only needed to summon him when need be,” stated Ala Raievschi.
She reminded about an episode in October 2015, when a portal published an investigation about a supposed criminal group. The investigation was based on the existence of a so-called letter from Russian law enforcement agencies. By a preliminary application, the edition staff was requested to deny the denigrating information about Oleg Pruteanu, whom those journalists called a thief-in-law, alias Borman. Ultimately, at the request of the court of law, the Ministry of the Interior provided a response, saying there was no such letter from Russia.
According to the lawyer, in the news conference given at the start of this October, the representatives of the police said that Oleg Pruteanu and his brother, called “the Borman brothers”, started their criminal activity in Italy in 2000 through thefts and robberies. The police evidently aimed to make this case resonant by reporting the alleged criminal activities of “the Borman brothers” in 2000-2004.
As regards the statements of prosecutors who, according to her, do justice on TV only, Ala Raievschi said these took revenge after the ordinary court of law acquitted Oleg Pruteanu of the murder of Alexei Veretco. An employee of the National Investigations Inspectorate hinted that pressure will be exempted on persons involved in this case to make them provide calumnious statements against Oleg Pruteanu.
The lawyer also said that in the absence of evidence, employees of the National Investigations Inspectorate and the Prosecutor’s Office for Organized Crime and Special Cases exert pressure and make persons furnish false testimonies. A woman was warned that if she does not make statements, her children will be taken away from her. The prosecutor in charge of this case threatened the lawyer that she will be stripped of license when she said that the employees of the National Investigations Inspectorate had an inhuman behavior when they arrested Oleg Pruteanu. Pressure is also exerted on Oleg Pruteanu, who is held on remand. The evidence she possesses shows the case was fabricated by the prosecution bodies. Groundless accusations that damage the image of people are made and innocent persons are punished criminally.
