Over 100 targeted in Moldova destabilization probe linked to Russia
This morning, over 250 searches are being conducted by officers from the National Investigation Inspectorate (INI), in collaboration with PCCOCS prosecutors, supported by masked officers from the BPDS "Fulger" and personnel from the Intelligence and Security Service. These operations are targeting more than 100 individuals located in various areas throughout the country.
According to the General Inspectorate of Police, the raids are part of a criminal investigation into the preparation of mass disturbances and destabilization efforts, which are allegedly coordinated from the Russian Federation by criminal elements.
The searches are being conducted at the homes of individuals involved in illegal activities, as well as in certain prisons. Authorities have announced that further details will be provided once the operations are complete.
We remind you that, over the last week, law enforcement agencies have conducted approximately 200 searches and seized “piles of money” in cases related to illegal party financing and voter corruption, ahead of the September 28 election.
The raids targeted both individuals and party headquarters, and investigators claim that coordinated groups from the Russian Federation are behind the networks. In one case, the money was allegedly transferred through the PSB mobile application of the Russian bank “Promsvyazbank”, which is subject to international sanctions. The amounts, sent in Russian rubles, were later converted and liquefied through the Telegram application, using special channels and VPN applications.
In parallel, the suspects were receiving direct instructions from curators in Russia, through Telegram groups, regarding the distribution of propaganda and disinformation materials on social networks. In some cases, voters were promised money, goods or other benefits to cast their vote in a certain way.
Investigators say that these mechanisms of financing and electoral corruption are part of a larger plan to influence the electoral process in the Republic of Moldova, coordinated from outside, with the aim of destabilizing the internal situation.
Igor Dodon, the leader of the Party of Socialists, which is participating in the parliamentary elections as part of the Patriotic Electoral Bloc, announced on Monday morning that the searches are being carried out at *"colleagues from the north: the leaders of the territorial organizations in Drochia and Râșcani". *
The socialist leader suggests that the ruling party is behind these actions, which are trying "to scare the world, to silence us", a week before the decisive vote in the parliamentary elections. "Maia Sandu and PAS are already looking for reasons to cancel the elections, because they know they will get a bad result on September 28," Dodon wrote on social media.
