Moldova's Superior Council of Prosecutors calls for urgent measures to protect state prosecutors

The Superior Council of Prosecutors (CSP) today issued a message condemning threats against prosecutors and calling for immediate protection for state prosecutors. The message comes after prosecutor Ghenadie Epure, the accuser in the case of Gagauzia's Bashkan (governor) Evghenia Gutul, informed that that he had received threats.

A statement issued by the CSP reads that the members of the Council consider these actions as a serious attempt to intimidate state prosecutors, deeming the situation unacceptable.

The CSP has requested that the Prosecutor General's Office (PG) and the Interior Ministry prioritize the investigation of these threats, assess the risks and adopt concrete measures for the protection of prosecutors and the guarantee of safety in the fulfillment of their duties.

“The CSP reaffirms its support for all prosecutors who loyally fulfill their mission of defending legality and fundamental rights,” the statement also reads.

A member of the Council of the Superior Council of Magistracy (CSM), Livia Mitrofan, has earlier also announced receiving new death threats, less than a week after filing a complaint to the police in a similar case.

Last week, the CSM member filed a police complaint after she and magistrate Ana Cucerescu, who examined the case of Bashkan Evghenia Gutul, has received threats.

During a broadcast on the public television station, the head of the General Police Inspectorate (IGP), Viorel Cernauteanu, said that the threatening calls directed towards judge Ana Cucerescu and the CSM member had originated from outside the country. He specified that the individuals involved in the actions of intimidation of magistrates had made several mistakes, which aids the investigation.

On August 5, the Chisinau Court, Buiucani headquarters, sentenced Evghenia Gutul to seven years in prison. The court found her guilty of knowingly accepting illegal financing from an organized crime ring, in the interest of a political party and an electoral contender. In the same case, the secretary of the former Shor Party, Svetlana Popan, got a six-year prison sentence.