Acting head of Anticorruption Prosecutor’s Office dismissed, Update

The acting head of the Anticorruption Prosecutor’s Office Viorel Morari has been fired. According to the Prosecutor General’s Office (PGO), during the summing up meetings held at the start of this year to assess the work of the Anticorruption Prosecutor’s Office in 2012, there were identified shortcomings both in the prosecution activity and at judicial level, Info-Prim Neo reports. One of the main subjects analyzed was the acquittal sentences passed by the courts of law with the participation of prosecutors of the Anticorruption Prosecutor’s Office. The number of acquitted persons rose from 29 in 2011 to 58 in 2012. According to the PGO, this is an alarming figure compared with the results achieved by the other local and specialized prosecutor’s offices of the country. The post of anticorruption prosecutor will be held by Ruslan Popov, head of the PGO’s Prosecution Control and Methodological Assistance Division, on an interim basis. [Update] Contacted by Info-Prim Neo, Viorel Morari said that he will hold the post of deputy prosecutor of the Anticorruption Prosecutor’s Office in continuation. He stressed it is better so as he will not have to work on two fronts and will be able to concentrate his efforts on one area. As to the increase in the number of acquittal sentences, Viorel Morari said this is due to the specific features of the criminal cases and, sometimes, to the imperfect legislation. He considers that he honored all his obligations.