The judges of the Supreme Court of Justice (SCJ) rejected on Thursday, September 14, the prosecutor’s request to extend the preventive measure against former President Igor Dodon, who is under investigation for passive corruption, organization and acceptance of political party financing from a “criminal organization”.

The information was confirmed to ZdG by the press service of the Anti-Corruption Prosecutor’s Office (PA).

“We confirm that the court has rejected the prosecutor’s request for the extension of the preventive measure – the order not to leave the country for 60 days, with regard to the defendant Igor Dodon, being applied the measure of constraint – the order to appear at the date and time of the fixed meetings,” the PA communicated.

Thus, the former president is no longer restricted from travelling abroad. The decision was taken by the panel of judges Anatolie Turcan, Ion Malanciuc and Ghenadie Eremciuc.

The SCJ’s decision comes shortly after the case prosecutor Petru Iarmaliuc was replaced in the context of legislative changes.

Igor Dodon said it was a “correct but delayed” decision.

“After 180 days of house arrest and 300 days of ban on leaving the country, the Supreme Court of Justice decided to reject the prosecutors’ request for a new extension of my ban on leaving Moldova.

I believe this decision is correct, but overdue. At the same time, I want to stress that, as I have said many times, I have no intention of leaving Moldova. I will continue to participate in all court hearings and to fight against the current regime by staying at home in Moldova,” Dodon said after the hearing.

On 29 August, socialist Igor Dodon’s appeal against the Supreme Court’s decision of 17 July 2023 to extend the preventive measure of an order not to leave the country was rejected as inadmissible.

On 27 February, the Anti-Corruption Prosecutor’s Office (PA) reported that, after 13 court sessions, anti-corruption prosecutors had begun presenting evidence in support of the charges against former President Igor Dodon in the case in which he is suspected of passive bribery, organising and accepting political party financing from a “criminal organisation”.

The former president is under judicial control. On 18 November 2022, Igor Dodon was released from house arrest and placed under judicial control, with a ban on leaving the country.

Earlier in February, the AP announced that prosecutors had ordered the recognition and hearing as suspects of former Moldovan President Igor Dodon, his wife Galina Dodon, and the doctor who made the “false medical document” on the basis of which the SCJ allowed the former head of state and his wife to leave the country.

The first court hearing in the case of former head of state Igor Dodon, which is investigating the episode filmed in June 2019, when he received a black bag from Vladimir Plahotniuc, took place on Monday, October 17, at the Supreme Court of Justice. Dodon is defended by three lawyers, and the prosecution is being handled by two prosecutors.

On October 6, 2022, the Anti-Corruption Prosecutor’s Office announced the indictment of the criminal case against former Moldovan President Igor Dodon in the commission of the crime of passive bribery and organization and acceptance of political party financing from a criminal organization, committed during his tenure as President of Moldova in June 2019.

The two-count case against Igor Dodon has been submitted to the SCJ for examination on the merits. According to the provisions of Article 39 of the Criminal Procedure Code, the SCJ is competent to judge in first instance criminal cases concerning crimes committed by the President of the Republic of Moldova, the Prosecutor’s Office said.

Igor Dodon was detained on 24 May after anti-corruption prosecutors carried out ten raids for more than ten hours at several locations owned by Dodon and his relatives.

Dodon is the first head of state to be tried for a crime committed while in office.