Prosecutors are seeking a six-year prison sentence for former Prime Minister Iurie Leanca, in the case of the concession of Chisinau International Airport. The state accusers are also demanding similar punishments for other defendants in the case, among them the former Minister of Economy, Valeriu Lazar, and the former interim General Director of the Airport, Petru Jardan. The information was confirmed for IPN by the press service of the Anti-Corruption Prosecutor’s Office.

The request was made on Monday by the case prosecutor, Victor Muntean, during the court session in which the judicial debates began. Thus, the prosecutor also requested six years of imprisonment for the former head of the Public Property Agency, Tudor Copaci, the former deputy director of the PPA, Angela Susanu, and the former financial director of the Airport, Alexandru Ciutac.

For Maria Sendila, former deputy chief at APP, and Alla Tubari, former head of the Economic Analysis Service of the Airport, the prosecutor requested five years of imprisonment each.

The case concerns the concession of Chisinau International Airport in 2013. Prosecutors claim that the accused individuals would have used their positions to favor the company “Avia Invest”, about which authorities assert was affiliated with the group led by Ilan Shor.

The accusation estimates the damage caused to the state at over 392 million lei. Prosecutors argue that, following the concession, the contract established a contribution of only 1% of the company’s revenues to the state budget, although a previous study recommended a rate between 8% and 21%.

The Anti-Corruption Prosecutor’s Office previously specified that Iurie Leanca allegedly received over 40 thousand dollars in two installments from the fugitive Ilan Shor, through some of his affiliated companies. The money was supposedly intended for the studies of the former prime minister’s son in the United Kingdom.

The criminal case was separated in February 2023 from the file initiated in 2014, based on a self-report. The defendants did not admit their guilt.