Former Prime Minister Adrian Nestace lost at the ECtHR the case against Romania in which he was sentenced to 4 years in prison together with Dana Nestace in the Zambacce case, in which he was accused of receiving various goods from China and the cost of some construction works in the amount of more than 600,000 euros in exchange for the appointment and retention of Iryna Jianu as the director of the State Construction Inspectorate.

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In a decision handed down on Thursday, the European Court of Human Rights unanimously rejected their requests as inadmissible, a decision that is final.

The case concerns criminal proceedings against Adrian Nestace and his wife, accused of illegally importing into Romania between 2002 and 2004 assets acquired in their own name through companies managed by individuals who held official positions in the government led by Nestace. moment in time, the ECtHR shows.

Conclusions of the court:

• “The panel of five judges of the High Court of Cassation and Justice was formed in accordance with internal standards, the application of which did not have consequences incompatible with the object and purpose of the right to a “legally established court” in the sense of the Convention.
• The plaintiffs’ doubts about the impartiality of the appellate panel are unfounded.
• The requirements of a fair trial did not require the re-examination of all witnesses who had not been heard by the appellate panel, so the principle of irrevocability was not violated.
• There was no indication of a violation of Article 6 (right to a fair trial) of the Convention in connection with the alleged use of police traps.
• The State has not violated its obligations under Article 34 (right to individual application) or 38 (adversarial proceedings) of the Convention.”

Zambaccian file

The ex-prime minister was accused by the DNA of receiving various items from China, as well as construction materials from former consul Ioan Peung, as well as from Irina Jiang, former head of the State Building Inspection, to maintain his office, the value of the goods exceeds 600,000 euro.

The goods could have been imported into the country using false customs documents provided by Dana Nestase. According to import customs declarations, the containers delivered to the Nestase family contained thermal panels, car wipes, raffia bags, as well as bronze figurines, garden gnomes or plumbing fixtures.

The case went to court in 2006, and the final decision was handed down by the Supreme Court in January 2014, that is, after almost 8 years, during which Nestase and his wife were innocent.

“I am innocent. Like my wife, involved in this process. How could this case end in an acquittal? The verdict should justify the work of DNA over the past nine years,” Adrian Nestase argued at the time.

He received 4 years of imprisonment, and his wife – 3 years of probation.