The hearing in the case of former Prime Minister Vlad Filat set for May 12, where witnesses for the defense were to be questioned, was postponed. State prosecutor Adriana Betisor has told IPN that the hearing was put off at the request of the lawyers for the reason that the head of the group of lawyers didn’t present himself.
The prosecutor noted that ex-Premier Vlad Filat submitted an application asking to be allowed not to take part in the hearing, but she does not know if the request refers to today’s hearing or to the next hearings too. “No plausible reason was indicated in the application for being absent from today’s hearing,” stated Adriana Betisor.
The hearing was put off until May 17. Lawyer Igor Popa was unavailable for comment.
Vlad Filat was deprived of parliamentary immunity and arrested on October 15, 2015. He faces 7 to 15 years behind bars for influence peddling and passive corruption and ban on holding public posts. He pleads not guilty.
