The Supreme Court of Justice today postponed until February 8 examining the admissibility of the appeal lodged by the convicted fugitive politician Ilan Shor, no reason given.

The admissibility of the appeal against the 15 years’ imprisonment sentence, handed down last April by the Chisinau Court of Appeal in absentia, was initially supposed to be examined by the Supreme Court last November, but the hearing was then postponed due to a recusal request from Shor’s lawyers. The recusal was eventually rejected.

In June 2017, Ilan Shor was sentenced to 7½ years in prison for his involvement in the 2014 bank fraud. After a protracted appeal that lasted almost six years, Shor was eventually sentenced to 15 years and ordered to pay 5.2 billion lei in reparations. Meanwhile, the banker-turned-politician fled to Israel, where he is believed to be absconding to the present day.