Evghenia Guțul and Svetlana Popan back in court: Defense appeals verdict, prosecutors stand firm
On Monday, the lawyers for Comrat Mayor Evghenia Guțul and Svetlana Popan, the former secretary of the "Șor" Party, once again requested the court to overturn their convictions. Similar to the previous hearing, both defendants participated via videoconference and denied the charges brought against them by the prosecution. In contrast, the prosecution argues that the evidence presented establishes the guilt of Guțul and Popan.
Our appeal requests the complete annulment of the sentence, describing it as illegal, arbitrary, and unmotivated, and seeks the acquittal of Ms. Evgenia Guțul and Ms. Svetlana Popan. Several court hearings were scheduled until November 6. We plan to conclude the examination of this case in the appellate court at the beginning of November, after which the judges will rule on our request," stated attorney Natalia Bayram.
On the other hand, prosecutors assert that all evidence indicates that both Guțul and Popan were involved in financing actions for the former "Șor" Party.
"We will uphold the legality of the sentence and advocate for the rejection of the appeals. We rely solely on the evidence and stand by the sentence, which we consider lawful. Therefore, we do not find it necessary to elaborate further on this matter," emphasized prosecutor Cristina Gladcov.
On August 5, the Chisinau Court of Appeals in Buiucani sentenced Evghenia Guțul to seven years in prison and Svetlana Popan to six years. They were convicted of involvement in the illegal financing of the former “Șor” Party and an electoral competitor supported by Ilan Șor, with an estimated amount of approximately 42.5 million lei. Both women were escorted from the courtroom directly to prison, where they continue to maintain their innocence.
