Marian Lupu’s daughter, the head of the Tax Collector Office, is among the beneficiaries.

The money ended up in the accounts of educational institutions through the offshore Rowallan Overseas SA, which benefited millions of dollars from the activity of Metalferos Company.

Rise Moldova writes that on July 15, 2014, when Marian Lupu was the Democratic Party’ president, the offshore company Rowallan Overseas SA transferred 10,510 Euros to the University of Maastricht, the Netherlands. The payment’s destination indicated ” Student ID: I6092064, Alexandra LUPU ” In 14 days, the offshore would transfer another 8,500 euros to the Dutch institution, adding up to 19,000 euros.

The former deputy Constantin Botnari sent his children to a British university, paying their studies with money from Rowallan Overseas Company’s accounts. Rise Moldova found three foreign singers received payments for performances in Plahotniuc’s nightclubs from the offshore’s account as well.

ZdG wrote in late July about a connection of the Panama-based offshore Rowallan Overseas, with another offshore company, Metoil Trading LLP, from which the “tick company” had received $4,63 million. Both offshore companies sorted metal transactions from Metalferos.

Latvia’s Money Laundering Prevention Service informed that Vladimir Plahotniuc benefitted from “Rowallan Overseas” SA between October 30, 2012 – June 1, 2015.

At that time, Plahotniuc was the first vice-president in the Moldovan Parliament. The company “Metoil Trading” LLP did not appear in Plahotniuc’s declaration of assets.

In June 2015, Serghei Noscov (70 years old), a Moldovan citizen, was the beneficiary of “Rowallan Overseas” SA offshore. Journalists from Rise Moldova noticed he was a “key figure” in the business controlled by Plahotniuc.

In 2006-2009, Noscov represented many of Plahotniuc’s offshore companies, including a hotel in Chisinau. 

In December 2019, the Kroll report showed that Vladimir Plahotniuc was the final beneficiary of several offshore companies, including Rowallan Overseas SA. All the offshore companies received US$18,2 million and €3,5 million. The money came from illicit sources, obtained from non-performing bank loans granted by three Moldovan Banks. 

Moreover, the Kroll report states that Rowallan Overseas received about US$646 million from June 2006 to September 2015. Detectives from the Kroll company established that Rowallan Overseas received half a million dollars, reaching later the “Finpar Invest” company’s accounts, founded by Plahotniuc’s family. In June-July 2013, the offshore received US$12,5 million from the three Moldovan banks involved in bank fraud.

The money “walked” through several offshore companies and later reached the Prime Management Company, the only officially indicated company in Plahotniuc’s declaration of assets.