Herman von Hebel's hybrid integrity

Herman von Hebel, the chairperson of the independent Commission for the evaluation of the integrity of candidates for the position of member in the self-administration bodies of judges and prosecutors - the Pre-Vetting Commission, worked from March 8, 2013 to April 16, 2018, as a Registrar at the International Criminal Court (ICC) from The Hague. The Dutch media wrote, in 2018, that the administrative activity of Herman von Hebel would have been affected by illegalities and would have caused damage to the International Criminal Court in the amount of at least 760,000 euros. Several decisions, deemed to be illegal,

Eight criminal cases started in 2021 are based on journalistic investigations, conducted by the CIJM team

In 2021, the prosecutors started at least 8 criminal cases, which are based on journalistic investigations, carried out by the team of the Center for Investigative Journalism and were published on the anticoruptie.md portal. The criminal cases concern the General Prosecutor, one of his deputy-prosecutors, several other chief prosecutors, targeted in some investigations conducted in recent years and a former deputy minister. One of the criminal cases concerns the former president Igor Dodon and the former Parliament Speaker Zinaida Grecianii, who were targeted in a CIJM journalistic investigation from 2008. After the investigations were published, the authors and the

Top 20 impactful investigations, conducted by the CIJM team in 2021

In 2021, the team of the Center for Investigative Journalism (CIJM) conducted 65 journalistic investigations into corruption, embezzlement of public money, illicit property and integrity issues in the public sector. In the last months of the year, at least 7 criminal cases were started against some chief prosecutors, all based on journalistic investigations carried out by the team of the Center for Investigative Journalism. The National Integrity Authority, based on the CIJM journalistic investigations, started controls into the property of 26 civil servants, out of which 13 prosecutors, 11 judges, a counselor and an official from the UTA Gagauzia.

PARTY SWITCHERS: Who buys deputies in Moldova

They migrate easily from one parliamentary faction to another, they establish and dissolve alliances, against nature, when the private and group interest prevails over the public interest. Promises from election campaigns do not matter anymore. The party switchers increase their properties, drive expensive cars, go on exotic vacations and send their children to study abroad. As usual, the phenomenon of party switching in the Chisinau Parliament is not shocking anymore. The Prosecutor’s Office should tell us who buys Moldovan deputies and what are the stakes behind the schemes with deputies. Yet, only one case, rather nebulous, was subjected to

Who are the winning candidates in uninominal constituencies Nb.35-51

Following the processing of 100% of the reports, 51 candidates in the uninominal constituencies will accede to the future legislative after the elections are validated. Reporters of the Anticorupţie.md portal carried out these candidates’ profile, their welfare and the scandals targeting them. About the winners in the constituencies Nb. 1-17, read here, and about the winners in the constituencies Nb.18-34, read here.   Grigore Repesciuc. Photo: moldovacurata.md Constituency Nb.35 – Căușeni: Grigore Repeșciuc, PDM. He is mayor of Causeni town starting with 2011. Initially, he ran as an independent candidate but in June 2014, he joined the Democratic Party in Moldova. In his second

Who are the winning candidates in uninominal constituencies Nb.18-34

Following the processing of almost 100% of the reports, 51 candidates in the uninominal constituencies will accede to the future Legislative after the elections are validated. Reporters of the Anticorupţie.md portal compiled these candidates’ profile, their welfare and scandals targeting them. About the winners in the constituencies Nb. 1-17, read here, and about the winners in the constituencies Nb.35-51, read here. Ilan Shor. Photo: Facebook.com Constituency Nb.18 - Orhei: Ilan Shor, Shor Party. Shor came to attention due to the problems with the law, the threats to the journalists and the opposition, as well as the praise of the achievements of Orhei Town

Who are the winning candidates in uninominal constituencies Nb. 1-17

Following the processing of almost 100% of the reports, 51 candidates in the uninominal constituencies will accede to the future legislative after the elections are validated. Reporters of the Anticorupţie.md portal compiled a profile about the candidates in uninominal constituencies and their property.  About the winners in the constituencies Nb. 18-34, read HERE, and about the winners in the constituencies Nb.35-51, read HERE. Zinaida Greceanii. Photo: socialistii.md Constituency Nb. 1 - Briceni: ​Zinaida Greceanîi, PSRM. MP in the Parliament of the Republic of Moldova and leader of the PSRM, Greceanii’s activity was marked by a fulminating rise on the public hierarchy scale: from

Generous sponsors of judges

Dozens of judges from the Republic of Moldova received last year expensive gifts from parents, parents-in-law and relatives. Either it's about flats, houses or money, in some cases the value of the gifts amounts to thousands of lei. While magistrates say that donations are due exclusively to the generosity of relatives, anti-corruption experts warn us that in this way, some would try to legalize unreported goods. 20 thousand euros and the right to live in a luxury home Vitalie-Silviu Midrigan's car, parked in front of the house where he lives. Photo: CIJM Vitalie-Silviu Midrigan, magistrate at the Botanica District Court Chisinau, is

The „Poor” Members of Balti Municipal Council with Businesses Abroad

Following the local elections in 2015, the municipal council of Balti was formed of councilors from seven parties. The largest part belonged to Our Party led by Renato Usatii: 26 members out of a total of 35 members. There were also three communists, two socialists and four councilors from different pro-European parties. At present, the mayor of Balti lives and carries out his business abroad. It is less well known that some members of the Municipal Council, both at power as well as in opposition, follow his example. They lead a double life, being poor members of the Balti municipal

Luxury managers of state

Directors of state-owned enterprises raise monthly salaries of tens of thousands of dollars despite the fact that most of them register losses year by year. Most of directors of  these companies get large sums of money and  their salaries  are sometimes higher than the annual profits of the companies which they manage. In some cases, even if the enterprises which they manage are on the brink of bankruptcy, managers double their salaries with benefits for good management or performance. Though some enterprises get considerable incomes, profits from the business are very low and the money is spent on all

Vested repairs in the buildings of the district courts in Moldova

Hundreds of millions of lei were invested in the last five years in the repair of courts buildings in the country. In some cases, the companies involved in repair built apartments for families of judges, and in others, the works were performed by economic units who have ties with judges or other officials. Data analysis on the website of the Public Procurement Agency shows that companies that were the target of negative reports of the Court of Auditors, repaired and rebuilt the offices of the courts. Millions for the repair of the offices of Buiucani District Court As for

President’s advisers: property, interests and tarnished past

A few days after Igor Dodon was sworn-in as president on December 26, he  presented his team of advisors elected for a four-year term. Most of them were part of communist government and some of them  backed the Socialist Party in Moldova (PSRM) led by Igor Dodon, either by active involvement in the activities of the party or generous donations during election campaigns in recent years. Ion Ceban, one of the most generous donors in the presidential elections Photo: CIJM Ion Ceban, 36, is the new spokesman of the president of the state and adviser on political affairs. As of July

Properties, businesses and interests of rectors of state universities

There are 31 high educational institutions in Moldova, of which 19 are state universities. Some rectors have managed the universities for 15-20 years. Only in 2014, when the new Education Code was implemented, it stipulated that rectors cannot serve more than two consecutive terms, of five years each. In addition to management and teaching activity, many of them got involved in politics – either by joining a party or offering the university as platform for politicians. Also, some of them have profitable businesses and luxury houses. Managers' salaries are not small. Center for Investigative Journalism analyzed incomes and properties

Igor Dodon and denigrating flyers about Maia Sandu

Flyers containing denigrating and manipulating messages about the candidate of the Party Action and Solidarity Maia Sandu are shared in full presidential campaign both in the capital and in the districts. The flyers warning about a possible invasion of refugees in Moldova, close of kindergartens, disappearance of villages and "danger" of homosexuals, do not contain information about  the author of printed flyers, the number of flyers and the money used for them, which contravenes to the electoral law. General Police Inspectorate argues that they are investigating the case. Reporters of the Center for Investigative Journalism found who planned the spread

Anabolics mafia. The clandestine road of steroids from Moldova to foreign sportspeople

The Republic of Moldova is among the top global manufacturers of anabolic steroids, illegal substances in the majority of EU states, the USA, as well as Russia. Corruption, lax legislation and the political protectionism easily obtained have created conditions for the development of a huge industry of anabolics in our country, which are in great demand on the black market around the world. Nowadays, at least seven factories producing anabolics are operating in Moldova, four of which are clandestine laboratories. Legal manufacturers of anabolics allegedly get protection from a former Romanian senator, a prominent Moldovan businessman and a former

Shadow man

All MPs from 2009 know him by sight. He acted discreetly at almost all parliamentary meetings over the past 7 years with the participation of deputy-chairman of the Democratic Party Vlad Plahotniuc. However, the name of Serghei Iaralov was first mentioned in the context of the fraud from the banking system on October 15 2015, several minutes before the National Anti-corruption Center’s officers arrested Vlad Filat, chairman of the Liberal Democratic Party. He revealed for the first time from the Parliament’s rostrum that Iaralov participated „in all discussions and deals” related to Banca de Economii (BEM).  The businessman was

Spokesman of Chisinau City Hall, with a luxury house and beneficiary of financial aid from budget

Vadim Branzaniuc, aged 33, managed to get a fortune of some millions of lei in just two years while he served as Head of the Division of Public Relations of the City Hall. Meanwhile, the civil servant was elected interim secretary of the Chisinau Municipal Council. He owns a two-story house in Petricani, Riscani sector, which he built in 2012-2014, show cadastral documents. The house has an accessory building and a garage for two cars. Letter “B” (first letter of his surname) is printed on the front wall of the house. Except this luxury house, in 2013 Branzaniuc received

Drone filming // Democrat Constantin Botnari fenced illegally 40 acres of forest?

Democrat MP Constantin Botnari who accompanies the controversial businessman Vlad Plahotniuc in public, tendered his resignation last week. Officially, he has modest incomes, but in the period when he was MP, he built a luxury house in the forest near Durlesti, suburb of the capital. His house reminds of the White House in Washington. A drone filming makes us believe that the land of about 21 acres was too small for the house, so the democrat MP fenced 40 acres of forest. Both representatives of Moldsilva Agency and local authorities claim that forest is not leased since 2012. Constantin Botnari

Hidden properties, businesses and interests of heads of state agencies (III)

Governments in Chisinau fell one by one which led to frequent changes in the leadership of state agencies. The Center for Investigative Journalism has previously revealed the property of heads of Ministries. Further, you will see that current directors of agencies contend for properties. One third of them came to public attention as their properties exceeded their real incomes. The majority of directors of agencies have profitable businesses which are hidden. Some state directors are listed as managers of their companies, which is prohibited by law.  The first and second part of the investigation revealed the businesses and properties of

Hidden properties, businesses and interests of heads of state agencies (II)

Governments in Chisinau fell one by one which led to frequent changes in the leadership of state agencies. The Center for Investigative Journalism has previously revealed the property of heads of Ministries. Further, you will see that current directors of agencies contend for properties. We found that one third of them came to public attention as their properties exceeded their real incomes. Half of directors of agencies have profitable businesses and many of them are hidden. Some state directors are listed as managers of their companies, which is prohibited by law.  The first part of the investigation reveals the properties,

Hidden properties, businesses and interests of heads of state agencies (I)

Governments in Chisinau fell one by one which led to frequent changes in the leadership of state agencies. The Center for Investigative Journalism has previously revealed the property of heads of Ministries. Further, you will see that current directors of agencies contend for properties. We found that one third of them came to public attention as their properties exceeded their real incomes. Half of directors of agencies have profitable businesses and many of them are hidden. Some state directors are listed as managers of their companies, which is prohibited by law.   Anatolie Ghilas, director of Cadastre, the controversial multimillionaire

Filip Government: interests, properties and businesses

The Government headed by Pavel Filip has in its componence new names, but they are known in political field. The majority of new-old ministers were part of the investigations carried out previously by the Center for Investigative Journalism that revealed the hidden interests and businesses of their families.  Pavel Filip, Prime-Minister Pavel Filip was elected Minister of Information Technology and Communication in 2011. He was director of the Enterprise "Bucuria" between 2001-2008. Before that, he worked for different offices in the same enterprise. Then, in 2008, he managed the enterprise "Tutun-CTC", until he was appointed head of the Ministry. According to the

MPs business: Liberal-democrats and non-affiliated MPs who vote for Pavel Filip in the Parliament

The parliamentary majority, ready to support the democrat Pavel Filip for the office of PM could not be established without the 7 liberal-democrats and 3 non-affiliated MPs. In the context of street protests, some of them withdrew their signatures when PD insisted on the candidacy of Vlad Plahotniuc. They changed their mind when Pavel Filip was proposed for premiership. Media wrote that the 7 liberal-democrats were called by Vlad Filat, arrested for corruption acts, to vote with the democratic candidate. Contacted by Anticoruptie.md, some of them denied it. Last week, we presented the profiles of the runners from PCRM.

The MP business: who are the converts ready to vote for the PD candidate for premiership

14 MPs quitted PCRM late last year, announcing that they no longer want to make the games of this faction.  The runners (defectors) gathered in the social-democratic Platform "For Moldova" and they had the first official meeting with Plahotniuc. He returned to politics to become the candidate of PD for the post of prime minister. All 14 MPs helped to the creation of the parliamentary majority, they are ready to vote with the controversial businessman for the office of premiership.  It is curious the fact that legislators, along with their colleagues that remained in PCRM and the Liberal Democrats,

Moldovagaz: Luxury houses and agreements signed between family members

Agreements of collaboration have been signed in the last three years between enterprises founded by Moldovagaz and companies affiliated to the family of the head of the Administration Council of the enterprise, Alexandru Gusev.  Based on these agreements, private and “independent” economic units perform the metering certification of natural gas distributed to consumers and they control the quality of natural gas on the territory of the Republic of Moldova. Also, currently all gas distribution companies managed by Moldovagaz have certificates of conformity to natural gas quality issued by a company managed by family members of Gusev. The Law № 235

Property of Heads from the National Energy Regulatory Agency: Unreported houses, luxury cars, plots of land and businesses

Officially, the increase in electricity tariffs will affect the four directors of the National Energy Regulatory Agency (ANRE) that approved the new tariffs. This is because at least two of them live in luxury apartments with a surface of over 100 sqm and their maintenance will increase considerably. On the other hand, the salaries of the four directors estimated at over 50 thousand lei per month and the businesses they manage will probably help them to cope easier with these increases. The National Energy Regulatory Agency (ANRE), an institution implementing the state policy on the regulation of energy sectors, decided

Six years at the Customs Service: businesses and properties of Balitchi family

Tudor Balitchi, head of the Customs Service of the Republic of Moldova lives in an apartment of 200 square meters, registered on his sister’s name. In recent years, his sister, established in the US and his mother, a doctor by profession, now retired, have become owners of more plots for construction worth millions of lei and placed at the outskirts of Chisinau. Also, Balitchi’ s mother together with the director of the Factory Rogob founded in 2015 a company that has declared activities in construction. Tudor Balitchi and his wife are also the founders of companies, although the Law

Businesses, assets and interests of deputy ministers from Strelet Government (II)

Amongst deputy ministers promoted in the Strelet Government there are rich and poor, with thriving and less active businesses, with clean or less clean records. Even if the new public office is incompatible with any other paid post some new deputies continue to administer businesses, some of them in the very field where they have been promoted. Reporters of the Center for Investigative Journalism have X-rayed the declarations of assets and interests of the second level officials of ministries, have checked them through various open databases and we propose below for your attention what assets  and interests these Strelet

Businesses, assets and interests of deputy ministers from Strelet Government (I)

Amongst deputy ministers promoted in the Strelet Government there are rich and poor, with thriving and less active businesses, with clean or less clean records. Even if the new public office is incompatible with any other paid post some new deputies continue to administer businesses, some of them in the very field where they have been promoted. Reporters of the Center for Investigative Journalism have X-rayed the declarations of assets and interests of the second level officials of ministries, have checked them through various open databases and we propose below for your attention what assets  and interests these Strelet

Streleț Government: interests, business and assets

The government led by Valeriu Strelet voted for by liberal democrats, democrats and liberals, is made up of several new names, but which are not unaffiliated to politics. Most new-old ministers were featured in previous investigations of the Center for Investigative Journalism which revealed hidden interests and businesses run by their families. Valeriu Streleț – Prime Minister Valeriu Streleț has been an MP since 2009. Although he has been involved in politics for years, the premier also has run lucrative businesses and a part of his wealth acquired while he was in Parliament. The politician is the sole owner of Bioprotect Ltd.