On Monday, the judges of the Barlad Court decided to close the trial in the “Shkoda” case, in which the mayor of Iasi, Mihai Kiritsa, and the former mayor, Gheorghe Nichita, were tried for abuse of office. The decision was made on the basis that the facts are extinguished by the statute of limitations.

The decision of the court, which provides for bringing to criminal responsibility according to the decision of the Constitutional Court, is not final.

In this case, together with Mihai Kirika, former mayor Gheorghe Nikita, former technical director of the Iasi City Hall, Dumitru Tomorug, former head of the legal service of the Roznovanu Palace, Doina Florescu, currently the mayor’s personal adviser, and Kostika Kishka, former head of the administrative service of the town hall.

Minutes of the decision of the Barlad court:

• “1. On the basis of Art. 396 paragraphs 6 C.pr.pen. to Article 16, paragraph 1, letter f of the Criminal Code, terminates the criminal proceedings against the accused: – CHIRICA MIHAI, brought to court for the crime of abuse of office, (…); – CHIĂCĂ COSTICĂ-EUGEN, sent to court for committing the crime of abuse of office (…); – FLORESKU DOYNA, sent to court for the crime of abuse of office (…); – NICHITA GEORGE, sent to court for the crime of abuse of office (…); – TOMORUG PETRU-DUMYTRU, sent to court for the crime of abuse of office, Pred. art 297 par. (1) CC with the application of Art. 5 para. (1) of the Criminal Code due to the fact that the initiated criminal proceedings cannot be carried out due to the expiration of the statute of limitations for criminal liability.
• 2. In accordance with Article 397 of the procedural code. criminal, notes that the victim Territorial-administrative unit – Municipality of Iasi, located in the Municipality of Iasi, bldg. Stephen the Great and Saint, no. 11, Iasi County, was not a civil party to the criminal proceedings. 3. According to Part 3 of Article 275 of the Criminal Procedure Code, court costs paid by the state remain with him. The partial fee of the ex officio defender for the legal assistance of the accused Chirica Mihai during the trial in the amount of 434 lei (1/2 of 868 lei), Ave. Postolache Cristina – delegation No. 20148/07.02.2022, should be transferred from the funds of the Ministry of Justice to the board lawyers of Yassa and will remain responsible for the state. Partial fee of the ex officio defender for the legal assistance of the defendant Nechita Gheorghe during the trial in the amount of 434 lei (1/2 of 868 lei), Popescu Isabela avenue – delegation No. 20149/07.02.2022, must be transferred from the funds of the Ministry of Justice to Iași the bar association, which will remain responsible for the state. Partial fee of the ex officio defender for the legal assistance of the accused Florescu Doina during the trial in the amount of 434 lei (1/2 of 868 lei), Opria Ionuţ Ave. – delegation No. 20150/07.02.2022, is transferred from the funds of the Ministry of Justice to the Iasi Bar Association and will remain responsible for the state”.

The “Shkoda” case brought to court in 2021

In this case, the prosecutors of the Prosecutor’s Office of the Iasi District Court sent Iasi Mayor Mihai Kiritsa and former Mayor Gheorghe Nichita to court on charges of abuse of office in January 2021. The City Hall of Iasi did not become a civil plaintiff in the process, noting that no damage was established.

According to the prosecutors, in 2013 the five persons involved in this case initiated an “illegal” acquisition procedure, a procedure on the basis of which on 16.05.2013 the municipality of Iași entered into four operating leasing contracts, as a user, with three Skoda Octavia cars and one Skoda Superb, although at that time authorities and public institutions were prohibited from leasing cars. The duration of the contract was four years. This purchase, according to the prosecutors, caused damage to the local budget of the municipality of Iași in the amount of 503,482.17 lei, as well as to the legal interests of the administrative-territorial unit of the municipality of Iași.

At that time, Mihai Kiritsa was the vice-mayor of the municipality of Iasi and replaced the mayor Gheorghe Nichita, who was detained in another case.

According to prosecutors, between February and May 2013, Mihai Chiritsa “approved several documents for the ‘purchase of 4 (four) vehicles with a high degree of operational efficiency and properly equipped’, later approving the Specifications for the delivery” of them through operational leasing. . In the document, according to the prosecutors, “technical characteristics specific to a certain manufacturer and a certain brand, respectively the Skoda brand, were inserted.”

Gheorghe Nikita is accused of having, in the same period, approved several documents for the purchase of 4 cars and signed, on behalf of the administrative-territorial unit of the municipality of Iași (as a user), operating lease contracts, based on which the lease payments have been made to date.

Tomorug Dumitru Petru, executive director of the Department of Technical and Investments of the administrative-territorial unit of the municipality of Iasi, “prepared and signed several documents for the purchase of 4 cars and signed operational leasing contracts on behalf of the administrative-territorial unit of the city of Iasi, the Municipality of Iasi (as a user)”. on the basis of which the lease installments have been paid up to date, as well as the Specifications for the supply of cars. The same charges were brought against the other two defendants.

Chirica, examined by DNA and DIICOT and in other cases

In April 2021, DIICOT indicted Mihai Kiritza in a case involving a downtown land deal, saying he was innocent and had a “reconciled conscience before the people of Yass and before God.” Mayor Mihai Kirik is accused of failing to inform the judicial authorities, as investigators have indications that the mayor may have known that a plot of land located in the Sărărie municipality area was the subject of questionable transactions.

Kirika then announced that he had temporarily stepped down from the leadership of the Iași branch of the PNL and would “concentrate on administrative activities.” His reaction came a day after the intervention of President Klaus Iohannis, who said he would demand a reaction from the PNL in the case of Mihai Kirik, who is accused of corruption, and the head of the CJ of Jassa Kostel Alekse, also prosecuted by the DNA.

In February 2022, Mihai Chirica was placed under judicial control by DNA for 60 days for continued intellectual forgery and incitement to usurpation of office. Former deputy mayor Gabriel Harabaghiu is being prosecuted for the same case.

According to DNA prosecutors, Mihai Kirika and Gabriel Harabaghiu ordered/signed documents contrary to the law, in the construction certification procedure, respectively, of the expansion of the building in the city of Iasi. The block would have been built and listed illegally, with higher levels than the permit and a built-up area larger than the permit, in violation of the zoning town plan.

According to DNA, the entry of the building into the land register was carried out with the support of the management and some officials of the local state authority on the basis of the act of attestation of construction/construction extension dated 10.10.2018, issued by the municipality of Iași.

Prosecutors said that during construction certification procedures, there would be three different versions of the content or the people who signed the certificate, all with the same registration number and the same date. Issuance of the certificate created an opportunity for the beneficiary company to register the ownership of the house in the land register and start selling apartments in this building, reports DNA.

In December 2022, DIICOT prosecutors placed Mihai Kirika under judicial supervision for a period of 60 days following a hearing in a case investigating several employees of the Iaşi City Hall regarding the approval of some constructions.

According to the prosecutor’s office, the facts relate to the procedure for granting permits for construction works by developers who would use connections with officials of the local state administration with powers in the field of issuing and monitoring compliance with urban planning documentation. Chirica appears in at least two other criminal cases opened by DNA and DIICOT.

• “Measures are carried out as part of the continuation of the investigation into the case of the creation of an organized criminal group and are aimed at the permit procedure for construction works by developers, which would be used by contacts with officials of the local state administration with powers in the field of issuing and monitoring compliance with urban planning documentation” – transmitted by DICOT.

Sources close to the investigation say that it will be about the construction of the Veranda restaurant on the Central Hall building, as well as other real estate transactions related to the Central Hall, writes Ziarul de Iași.