Employees of the Internal Ministry "had mental problems"

The Minister of Interior Gabriel Berca said Sunday in an interview for a private television that after the ordered verifications, questions have already emerged about 52 employees who have lethal weapons and who are under the Medical Directorate analysis, because they had psychological problems.

"We have about 52 cases with doubts that currently are are under the Medical Directorate analysis. When we have all these information we will see how many such people, potential criminals or potential people that can create problems to citizens we have and see what we shall do." said Berca Gabriel.

The official noted that those have been taken up arms and, according to the results of the analysis that medical direction made will be taken appropriate measures.

"After my knowledge and my mood, they have no longer guns. I hope this actually happen and verifications are permanent," he said.

Gabriel Berca showed that in the case the author of bombing a hairdresser in Bucharest, Gheorghe Vladan, who shot to death his wife and a colleague, injuring six other people, the problem was precisely that his superiors weren't familiar of his behavior and to avoid such situations had to check all employees owning lethal weapon.

Vladan case "casts a curse on the entire police"

On March 5 eight people were shot with a rifle bullet by a police officer, Vladan Gheorghe, whose wife worked at a hairdresser in the Pearl complex in downtown.

Two of the people shot, employees of the salon, died, one of which being his wife and six other were injured.

The investigators say that the motive for the crime was jealousy. Vladan Gheorghe was in the process of divorcing his wife and the first hearing was set for 7 March.

The author of the armed attack is an employee of Ministry of Interior since 2007.

He had the gun legally from 2010 and was last psychologically tested in 2011.

Vladan Gheorghe has been accused in 2005 of threats, insults and strikes or violence, but the courts decided in his acquittal.

Berca Gabriel added that after the case Vladan has been discussed very much and have made statements against all police officers, which is an injustice to those that do their duty.

"These tragic events cast a curse on the entire police. It isn't okay . There are people who every day, in the streets, are doing their duty and they are many.

"However, from this point of view, I think that I, as a minister, must give a very serious support signal to those who deserve, namely to those who do their duty. Further measures will be hard for those from inside the system impair to the ministry."said Gabriel Berca.

"No salary is enough for a corrupt policeman"

In the same interview for Pro TV, the interior minister said that he wanted to clean up the corrupt police system and professionalize their employees and indicated that the subject will be discussed in a future meeting of the Supreme Defense Council.

Asked which would be a decent salary for a policeman, the Minister Gabriel Berca said that for a policemen accustomed to steal, no salary is enough, because they are subjected to temptation.

Gabriel Berca transmitted to corrupt police officers that the interior ministry has "the antibodies needed to clean the system".

"We have to give these people out of the system. Otherwise, I'm sure there must be a salary much higher than now. But Romania has made some efforts in the past two years to be stabilized in terms of economic it was paid a a very important political cost . we need to increase wages. We are trying and we took the return of wages after 1 June, and further we will see." said Gabriel Berca.

The official said that he is not making illusions because he knows there will still be corruption, but it is important to be reduced.

Asked if some of the policemen are afraid to fire when pursuing an offender, the Minister said that there are situations when this is happening and that solutions must be found.

"Besides, when someone violates the law and becomes agitated, the handcuffs are put. Democracy works on rules and regulations. I think some people’s timidity in police station is unnatural. Of the fair ones, I mean. I think we may need a more severe law. It is a problem that I do not think will generate great discussion, I think the power and the opposition want it," said the Minister of Administration and the Interior.”

Gabriel Berca said he wants tougher law for the police officers not to be afraid to shoot.
"I do not want to see police officers humiliated."


Translated by Ioana Vioreanu
MTTLC, Bucharest University