The former deputy of ex-Prosecutor General Alexandr Stoianoglo, Ruslan Popov, has appealed the decision of the first instance court, which in December 2024 rejected his complaint against the General Prosecutor's Office. Popov is seeking the annulment of the order terminating his service, claiming that his right to choose a suitable position was obstructed following Stoianoglo's suspension. In November 2023, Ruslan Popov lost a lawsuit against the Center for Investigative Journalism (CIJM). Popov sued CIJM after journalists from the Anticoruptie.md portal exposed his business in Mileștii Mici, which he managed but was registered under his father’s name — a retiree over 70 years old. After the investigation was published, the National Integrity Authority checked the former prosecutor’s assets, and the Anticorruption Prosecutor’s Office opened a criminal case for illicit enrichment, which is currently being examined in court.

The plaintiff claims that after Alexandr Stoianoglo was suspended, he accessed the link with available vacancies in the Prosecutor's Office and found that “not all leadership positions (including in specialized prosecutor’s offices) were listed, and there were no vacant positions at the level of the General Prosecutor's Office.” However, he knew that such positions existed. Furthermore, Popov believes that “his mandate as Deputy Prosecutor General has not ended.”

Popov pointed out several rights violations.

“The challenged order falls under Articles 10 and 11(1)(a) of the Administrative Code, as it was issued by a public authority and affects the rights and legitimate interests of the petitioner, namely: the constitutional right to work (Art. 43 of the Constitution of the Republic of Moldova); the constitutional right to assistance (Art. 47 of the Constitution); the right to a career and professional development; the right to a fair trial; and the right to private life, through the restriction to form and develop relationships with other human beings of a professional nature (case C. v. Belgium, ECtHR judgment of 07.08.1996, paragraph 25; case Pretty v. the United Kingdom, no. 2346/02, paragraph 61, etc.),” stated Popov.

On the other hand, the General Prosecutor’s Office responded that it “took the necessary measures to comply with legal norms, ensured the complainant’s opportunity to choose a vacant position under the law, an opportunity the complainant did not use, and therefore the contested administrative act is legal.”

After the first instance court rejected the former Prosecutor's action, the case reached the Central Court of Appeal.

Detained at the beginning of October 2021, Popov was held in pre-trial detention for nearly 30 days in the isolation cell of the National Anticorruption Center.

Initially, the Chisinau Court ordered his house arrest, but a few days later, the Chisinau Court of Appeal granted the anti-corruption prosecutors’ request to place him in an isolation cell.

Later, the Chisinau Court of Appeal amended the lower court’s decisions concerning Popov, extending his house arrest. Prosecutor Popov was suspended from office during the investigation, and in March 2021, he submitted a resignation request, which was accepted.

Ruslan Popov pleads not guilty.