SCJ, final decision on Ilan Șor's case
The Supreme Court of Justice has made its final decision regarding Ilan Șor's case, rejecting the defense's appeals. Ilan Șor has been sentenced to 15 years in prison for bank fraud. The Supreme Court upheld the ruling made by the Chișinău Court of Appeal on April 13, 2023.
"All essential arguments presented by the defense, particularly those that could have influenced the outcome of the case, were found to be either unfounded or inadmissible on procedural grounds. Additionally, other arguments concerning the inadmissibility of evidence were deemed manifestly unfounded or have already been sufficiently addressed by the appeal court, eliminating the need for further detailed examination in this judgment", reads the court's decision.
In June 2017, Ilan Shor was sentenced to seven and a half years in prison for causing damage to the state through fraud and breach of trust. By the decision of the Chisinau Court of Appeal of April 13, 2023, Ilan Shor was definitively sentenced to 15 years in prison. The appeal court deprived Shor of the right to hold positions in the banking system for five years and ordered the collection of 5.2 billion lei from him.
Shor fled the Republic of Moldova in the summer of 2019, together with the former democratic leader, Vladimir Plahotniuc. For several years, he lived in Israel – a country of which he is a citizen. Since the beginning of last year, Shor started to leave more and more often for the Russian Federation, a country where his wife and children live. Previously, Interpol Chisinau asked the Kremlin to detain and extradite the fugitive oligarch to the Republic of Moldova. The request was, however, refused.
It is worth noting that Shor continued to be involved in politics in Chisinau, even after he fled the country. Initially, he did so through his party that bore his name, which has since been declared unconstitutional, and later – through political formations affiliated with him. The government in Chisinau accuses him of leading an “organized criminal group” that is trying to destabilize the situation in the Republic of Moldova, in the interests of the Russian Federation. The oligarch denies the accusations.
