Trained in Moscow to facilitate illicit payments in the electoral context

The accused, responsible for the administrative territory of the Strășeni district for the political structure “VICTORIE – ПОБЕДА”, allegedly participated in training sessions in Moscow in April and June 2024, then, during the period from June to September 2024, allegedly recruited Donoagă Viorica, providing her assistance in opening/managing the PSB account and installing the application to receive an illicit remuneration of 14,375 Russian rubles, approximately equivalent to 2,700 MDL, for the purpose of determining the vote for the candidate supported by the bloc and the option “NO” in the referendum.

Other property measures: Confiscation of the instrument of the crime: Redmi A3 phone, Samsung A05 phone, and ASUS X515EA-EJ1413 laptop

First court: Conviction
Appeal: Not applicable / unknown
Review: Not applicable / unknown

The ruling concerns a form of electoral corruption through recruitment, pyramid organization, and facilitating access to remuneration via the PSB/PromsvyazBank application. The court found that the defendant was territorially responsible for the Strășeni district within the framework of the “VICTORIE – ПОБЕДА” mechanism, participated in training in Moscow, and facilitated the opening/management of the PSB account for Donoagă Viorica, with the aim of influencing the vote in the presidential elections and referendum.

The peculiarity of the case lies in the fact that the witness Donoagă stated in court that the money was presented as payment/reward for distributing leaflets, and not as an explicit voting instruction; however, the court took into account the electoral context, the training, the PSB application, technical connections, and the seized materials. Unlike the Șoilița case, here the confiscation of electronic devices was ordered as property used in the commission of the crime.