Former PDM leader Vlad Plahotniuc is being investigated in two criminal cases on charges of large-scale money laundering. Viorel Morari, the chief prosecutor of the Anti-corruption Prosecutor's Office, stated at a press briefing, that the two cases were connected into a single procedure, IPN reports.
According to the materials of the first criminal case, which was initiated on September 23, in 2013-2015, Vlad Plahotniuc created criminal schemes with the purpose of converting, transferring, acquiring, owning and using some assets that represented illegal gains. In order to conceal the illicit origin of the money, Vlad Plahotniuc used intermediaries to incorporate a number of resident and non-resident companies, such as Longford Parteners LTD, Introstyle Solution LTD, Rowallan Overseas SA, Nobil Air Limited, Tukumaan Limited and SRL Finpar Invest. These companies made possible the circulation of 18 million dollars and 3.5 million euros, declared Viorel Morari.
The APO chief prosecutor added that, on September 23, another criminal investigation was started on similar charges. It was established that payments from Tukumaan Limited were made in 2013-2014 with the purpose of "granting a loan" of over $ 7.2 million. to Finpar Invest Ltd, as well as payments to Nobil Air Ltd. of over 380,000 euros with the destination “air transport services for passengers.” The same procedure was made to ABD Asiana Development Limited in exchange to opening a bank account ABLV Bank of over 1.5 million euros and over 1.1 million dollars for Plahotniuc’s wife.
Viorel Morari also said that “the basis for starting the criminal prosecution served to address the Swiss authorities reached in a spontaneous exchange of information from June 2019, and the analysis of the Service preventing and combating money laundering regarding Plahotniuc’s economic agents”.
Viorel Morari stated that a person is under preventive detention, as an accomplice, because he was managing a resident trading company that transferred money. Two persons, including Vlad Plahotniuc, are under investigation. The anti-corruption prosecutors have made requests regarding the preventive detention and the arrest warrant for a period of 30 days.
If found guilty, they face imprisonment of 5 to 10 years.
