The Supreme Court decided that in the case when a criminal case is initiated against the accused for the crimes for which he is at large, and later there is a suspicion that the defendant committed a new crime with intent or preparation for committing a new crime, a preventive measure in the form of arrest can be applied only in the first file.

The Supreme Court of Cassation and Justice (ICCJ) accepted the appeal in the interests of law filed by the Attorney General and therefore decided that “in the interpretation and uniform application of the provisions of Art. 223 par. (1) lit. d) from the Code of Criminal Procedure, in a situation where a criminal case has been initiated against the defendant for the commission of a crime for which he is being investigated in a state of freedom (the first case), and later there is a reasonable suspicion that the defendant willfully committed a new crime (the second case) or is preparing before the commission of a new crime, preventive measure in the form of detention on the basis of Art. 223 par. (1) lit. d) the Criminal Procedure Code can be ordered only in the first file.”

The Appeals in Interest of Law (RIL) Bench held that for the purposes of remanding an accused on the grounds relied upon when he is being investigated in two different cases, the offense for which the criminal punishment was instituted would be an epochal offence, depending on which it will be determined whether there will subsequently be a reasonable suspicion that the defendant has committed a new intentional crime, and this crime will also be the basis for a proposal for preventive arrest under this hypothesis.

The ICCJ decision, delivered on 27 November 2023, was published in the Official Gazette on 29 January 2024 and entered into force.

The decision made in the interests of the law does not affect either the considered court decisions or the position of the parties in these processes.