Maia Sandu about Russia's involvement in the Nesterovschi case: An unacceptable interference in the justice system of the Republic of Moldova
The President of the Republic of Moldova, Maia Sandu, condemns the involvement of the Russian Federation in the case of defected deputy Alexandr Nesterovschi, who, according to the Intelligence and Security Service, would have benefited from support from Moscow to evade the execution of his prison sentence. The head of state qualifies these actions as "unfriendly" and accuses the Kremlin of "interference in the justice of the Republic of Moldova". Invited to the show "La 360 de grade" on Radio Moldova, Maia Sandu declared that Chisinau will respond with firm decisions to this interference.
"We have several examples when the Russian Federation, in many cases through the involvement of the Embassy, takes unfriendly measures about the Republic of Moldova. In this case, it is the interference of the Russian Federation in the justice of the Republic of Moldova, an unacceptable thing, because imagine that the Republic of Moldova would get involved in the act of justice in the Russian Federation. These are some ugly things, which do not contribute to a fair relationship. (…) I am confident that the Government, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, will soon announce the measures it is taking".
President Maia Sandu admits that bringing Alexandr Nesterovschi to justice "will not be simple", since, most likely, the Transnistrian region - which maintains a close relationship with Moscow - will avoid handing him over to the constitutional authorities.
We would like to point out that the director of the SIS, Alexandru Musteață, announced on March 31 that the convicted MP Alexandr Nesterovschi is currently in the Transnistrian region, where he allegedly arrived with the support of the Embassy of the Russian Federation in Chișinău. According to him, the operation is part of a hybrid aggression mechanism coordinated by Russia against the Republic of Moldova. The diplomatic mission publicly rejected the accusations, describing the statements of the head of the Intelligence and Security Service as “unfounded and unacceptable insinuations”.
MP Alexandr Nesterovschi was sentenced on March 19 to 12 years in prison in a closed-type penitentiary. The sentence was pronounced in his absence. The MP affiliated with the fugitive oligarch Ilan Șor is accused of passive corruption and involvement in the illegal financing of a political party by an organized criminal group. Investigators claim that the deputy received at least $35,000, plane tickets to Tel Aviv and an important position in the "Renastere" Party, in exchange for leaving the Bloc of Communists and Socialists and contributing to the formation of a new faction affiliated with Ilan Shor.
