Ex-deputy minister gets 9 years for using state funds to pay family debts
A former Moldovan Deputy Minister of Finance was sentenced to nine years in prison on Thursday for active and passive corruption. The Chisinau Court found the official guilty of attempting to use public funds to settle her family's private construction debts.
The court also imposed a fine of 450,000 MDL (approx. €23,255) and banned the former official from holding public office for 12 years. She has been placed under a travel ban pending a final ruling.
According to prosecutors, the defendant abused her 2017 mandate — when she oversaw health and social protection financing — to divert 15 million MDL (approx. €775,193) from the Government's Reserve Fund. While the funds were officially earmarked for upgrading a public medical facility in Chisinau, the move was intended to benefit a specific contractor.
The Anti-Corruption Prosecution Office stated that the defendant approached the construction company's manager with a plan to rig the public tender. In exchange for the contract, she allegedly sought 425,000 MDL (approx. €21,963) — representing a 5% kickback from the 8.5 million MDL project — to facilitate the transfer of funds.
State accusers further alleged that the former official offered an identical sum to the head of the medical institution. The bribe was intended to ensure the institution selected the defendant's preferred contractor during the procurement process.
The sentence is not final and may be appealed at the Chisinau Court of Appeal.
Translation by Iurie Tataru
