Judge Gheorghe Balan, who ordered the release of Vladimir Andronachi from house arrest and the change of the measure to “personal guarantee” on August 11, in a ruling that, according to the head of the Anticorruption Prosecutor’s Office, Veronica Dragalin, cannot be challenged, explains his decision in a statement given to ZdG.             

Gheorghe Balan told us that the reason for the decision to release the politician and businessman Vladimir Andronachi was to avoid the risk that he would remain without any preventive measure.                   

“We have not yet started the judicial investigation, we are only at the early stage, in the preparatory part of the judicial session. I have changed the preventive measure into a personal guarantee, so as not to find myself in a situation where Andronachi remains without any preventive measure.  On 2 November, practically the day after I had left on leave, Andronachi would have had any preventive measure expire, and this is not my fault, the law says that you cannot extend a preventive measure for more than one year. I gave up my leave. And then, the prosecutors came with the idea of extension, and the others came to the meeting with the guarantor,” the judge pointed out.                      

Balan also added that all four guarantors are trusted persons, as the law says.                           

“I didn’t pick them up from the street, two mayors came, one in his second term, another in his fourth, the abbot of the Căpriana monastery came, a lady who worked as a teacher for 45 years came – people came, as prescribed by law, trustworthy. According to the law, the personal guarantee removes any risk, and of all the risks invoked there was only the danger of the crime,” said Judge Balan.                   

Who is the judge who released former MP Vladimir Andronachi from house arrest. Career details                          

Gheorghe Balan, the judge who released from house arrest former Democratic MP Vladimir Andronachi, who was involved in three criminal cases (the “Metalferos” case, the “Consulate of Moldova in Odessa” case and the “Bank Fraud” case), has been a magistrate since 1996 and has worked throughout his career only at the Chisinau Court.                         

Since March 2023, Judge Gheorghe Balan has been examining the case in which Andronachi is accused of involvement in the theft of the billion. On 19 May 2023, Balan ordered the criminal case to be examined in closed session, at the request of the defence, because “possible reports and/or broadcasts related to this judicial process risk emotionally affecting the defendant’s family” and because some evidence would constitute bank and state secrets, according to the Anti-Corruption Prosecutor’s Office.