Moldova-Switzerland discussions on asset recovery
Swiss authorities will assist Chisinau in its efforts to identify, manage, and recover assets obtained from illicit activities. This agreement was established on August 5 between Olga Golban, the Director of the State Tax Service, and David Mattan, an expert from the International Center for Asset Recovery (ICAR) at the Basel Institute for Governance in Switzerland.
Olga Golban provided the Swiss expert with an overview of the current procedures for managing confiscated assets by the State Tax Service, as well as the challenges faced in this process.
“The parties also examined how cooperation between the State Tax Service and the International Center for Asset Recovery (ICAR) could add value, especially in complex cases that require coordinated responses among different institutions,” reported the State Fiscal Service (SFS).
Since 2021, ICAR has been offering practical expertise to Moldovan institutions in areas such as financial investigations, international cooperation, mutual legal assistance, and the strengthening of legal and policy frameworks for asset recovery.
Villa in Switzerland purchased for 32.2 million euros
On September 23, 2024, Swiss authorities imposed a seizure on the luxurious villa in Geneva belonging to Oxana Childescu, the ex-wife of Vlad Plahotniuc.
“Ms. Childescu resides in an exquisite villa located in Vésenaz, an upscale village on the outskirts of Geneva. The property was purchased at the end of 2012 for 31.5 million Swiss francs (approximately 33.2 million euros) by Mareches SA. This 449-square-meter home, known as 'Le Léman', sits on a plot of over 5,000 square meters and features a swimming pool by the lakeshore. It is now under seizure because Moldovan authorities suspect it was acquired with funds of questionable origin, specifically from oligarch Vladimir Plahotniuc. He is currently facing criminal proceedings in Chisinau for money laundering and is also under sanctions imposed by the United States and Switzerland,” reported Le Temps last year.
At the end of July this year, the Centru Court of Appeal rejected the request to transfer the case initiated by Oxana Childescu, who is seeking to lift the seizure on the villa in Switzerland. The case has been pending before the Chisinau Court, Centru headquarters, since 2021 and will be connected to another trial filed by Mareches SA, the company that owns the property, which is making a similar request, according to anticorupție.md.
We would like to inform you that the former democratic leader, Vladimir Plahotniuc, was detained on July 22 in Greece. He is currently being held in the largest prison in the country, awaiting extradition to the Republic of Moldova.
Moldovan prosecutors accuse him of creating and leading a criminal organization, as well as committing fraud and money laundering. It is alleged that he benefitted from financial means stolen from Banca de Economii, Unibank, and Banca Sociala, amounting to a total of $39,284,000 and €3,518,705.
The oligarch, who has been a fugitive for more than six years, faces a potential prison sentence of 8 to 15 years.
According to the Anti-Corruption Prosecutor's Office, law enforcement agencies have seized assets belonging to Plahotniuc valued at over one billion lei. These assets include land for construction, residential and non-residential properties, the share capital of companies, cultural and recreational buildings, financial resources, and assets located abroad, in order to ensure compensation for the damage caused by his crimes and for possible special confiscation.
