Convict Nicolai Andrei Șepeli to return to serving prison sentence after revocation of pardon decree

Convict Nicolai Andrei Șepeli is to return to serving his prison sentence following the revocation of the presidential pardon decree. The clarification was made today by Minister of Justice Vladislav Cojuhari before the Government meeting.

The official emphasized that under the legal framework, individual pardoning is a constitutional act and a collective administrative process, with the decision being made following interdisciplinary mechanisms.

“This procedure includes the request submitted by the Prosecutor’s Office, examination of the case by the Pardon Commission, and the drafting of its conclusion. The decree was issued in 2022, based on the recommendations of the Pardon Commission. It is important to understand two elements – if today the person commits a criminal act, of course this will be investigated by the competent institutions, and it is necessary to make an essential distinction between the fact that the pardon is granted based on the information and values available at the time of the decision,” stated Vladislav Cojuhari.

The minister said that the presidential decree granting the pardon to the person was not annulled, but revoked.

The Presidency of the Republic of Moldova announced at the end of last week the decision to revoke Decree No. 418-IX of 11 April 2022, which provided for the granting of a pardon. The decision is based on the emergence of new circumstances, reported by the competent authorities, which announced that the pardoned person is allegedly part of an organized criminal group suspected of intending to prepare assassinations of persons in Ukraine. Checks are also being carried out on the procedure for examining the pardon case, on the overall process of collecting information, and on the way the probation period was monitored and implemented, including in order to improve verification and prevention mechanisms for such situations in the future.

According to data from the Presidency, during 2021–2024, the Commission for Problems of Pardoning Convicted Persons under the President of the Republic of Moldova examined 640 applications for pardon, of which 22 persons – 11 men and 11 women – were proposed for and granted pardon. In 2025, no person has been proposed for pardon.

Pardon is an act of clemency that offers certain convicted persons the opportunity for social reintegration, under the strict observance of the law, without diminishing the importance of respecting the rule of law or individual responsibility.