Sorin Ovidiu Vîntu and Liviu Luca arrested for 29 days
On the same charges with Sorin Ovidiu Vîntu and Liviu Luca there were arrested another eight people. Prosecutors accused them of misappropriation of Petrom Service. The appeal will take place at the Court of Appeal in Bucharest.
Articol de Paul Poteraşi, 09 Noiembrie 2011, 15:47
Bucharest Court decided to arrest for 29 days by Sorin Ovidiu Vîntu and Liviu Luca and the other eight people accused of misappropriation of Petrom Service.
The prosecutors of the Criminal prosecution department within the Prosecutor of the High Court of Cassation and Justice arrested Sorin Ovidiu Vîntu and Liviu Luca, the businessman from Moldova - Octavian Turcan, former CEO of Petrom Service - Gheorghe Supealã, former chief financial officer of Petrom Service - Zizi Anagnostopol, the businessman from Prahova Mihai Sorin, Mihai Viorel Râmboacã, Rãzvan Florin Râmboacã, Daniela Braşoveanu and Ioan Bohâlţeanu , charges being theft, complicity to theft and money laundering.
In Sorin Ovidiu Vîntu's case, the court decided that the period of 29 days will run when he is actually brought in custody of the Capital's Police, as he left Bucharest Tribunal around 14.00, after his restraining order expired.
The decision was contested by the nine defendants, who remained in court to wait for the decision.
The appeal will takes place at the Court of Appeal.
Prosecutors decided that Rino Raicovich Graziano, investigated in the same file, as a preventive measure is not allowed to leave the country.
Prosecutors also based their arrest proposal on the argument about the public reaction in relation to serious allegations about harming the heritage of tens of thousands of people and the consolidated state budget.
"These accusations proved damaging the social climate and they necessarily require a firm answer of judicial authority.
"If the defendants are set free, then the citizens may get a feeling of distrust in the state bodies and the fear that their income can not be protected, as a result of acts of the same kind", the prosecutors said about the proposed arrest of the ten accused.
The prosecutors of Supreme Court ordered on Monday the insurer seizure of 81 of property goods - lands, apartments, restaurants, retail spaces, cars, boats, bank accounts - in the file in which Sorin Ovidiu Vîntu and Liviu Luca were arrested for defrauding Petrom Service SA.
According to the prosecutors, the damage is over 83 million euros.
Prosecutors claimed that " the controlled bankruptcy of Petrom Service SA caused damages of f 83,163,165 euros to the company and affected 72,000 members of the Employees Association."
The bankruptcy of Petrom Service SA might have produced indirectly damages to the state budget with the amount of about 98 million euros, the press realese of the prosecutors showed.
The businessman Sorin Ovidiu Vîntu was owner of Realitatea TV until 29 April 2011 and was involved in the file of the FNI collapse.
Translated by Iulia Florescu, MA student, MTTLC, University of Bucharest
