Former Interior Minister Cristian David, accused of taking 500,000 euros in bribes in order to intervene with the prefect of Buzau in favor of a person claiming a land could be placed under house arrest, ICCJ magistrates decided Tuesday, Mediafax reports.
The decision of the High Court of Cassation and Justice (HCCJ) is not final, so that, for now, the former minister remains in custody.
The former minister was arrested on January 22, in the case in which he is accused of allegedly having received 500,000 euros to intervene with the then prefect of Buzau County, Cristinel Bigiu currently suspended from the Buzau County Council presidency, to establish the right of property in the case of a land of 15 hectares in the city of Buzau by the County Commission .
Prosecutors pointed out that in this case, the trustee Adrian Mladin, acting for Cecilia Viorica Ştirbulescu in the process of claiming a land in Buzau, would have turned to Valeriu Roger Niţescu, director of Cristian David’s minister cabinet at the time, to connect him through with the prefect Cristinel Bigiu, because the claim file was delayed. Niţescu would have said then to Mladin that he did not know the prefect but that Cristian David could intervene with Bigiu.
"On 18.09.2007, shortly after the intervention, the Buzau County Commission for the establishment of land ownership issued the ownership certificate on the name of the person on whose behalf the trustee had acted, namely Ştirbulescu Cecilia Viorica over 15 hectares of land ", according to prosecutors.
Niţescu allegedly claimed and received 1,1 million euros from Mladin, telling him that minister David has asked for 500.000 euro in order to intervene with the prefect.
On February 1, 2008, Niţescu and Adrian Mladin went together to a bank in downtown, Bucharest where Mladin took out 500,000 euros. Later, they went to the Ministry of Interior, where Niţescu gave Cristian David 500,000 euros, prosecutors say.
The prosecutors documents also shows that, in 2007, at the request of Cristian David, Cristinel Bigiu would have met with Adrian Mladin, to help with the release of the ownership titles. At that meeting, Bigiu would have said that it was a difficult case, and given that the land was in Buzau city limits, there were many people who "fought for it".
Cristian David was denounced in 2014 and DNA requested on November 10, notice of the President for the prosecution of the former minister for bribery. On November 19, 2014, Traian Basescu, the president at the time, announced that it had given its opinion.
In another case, DNA announced on March 5, 2014, that David, at the time Minister Delegate for the Romanians Abroad, was prosecuted for abuse of office in the form of improper participation, forgery and false statements, which had been made to justify 60,000 euros.
On February 26, 2014, Cristian David has resigned as Minister Delegate for Romanians Abroad, along with other ministers in the Liberal government. On the same day, after DNA asked for the prosecution to begin, Cristian David has resigned from membership of the Liberal Party, saying he made the decision not to affect the party's image due to prosecutors’ allegations.
Buzău County Council President, Cristinel Bigiu, who was prefect from January 2005 to May 2007, then Senator from 2008-2012, was suspended from office in December 2014, after being taken into custody for bribery.
Cristinel Bigiu and hisgodson, Florin COLGIU accused of bribery or complicity in this crime were arrested on December 7, 2014. Bigiu is prosecuted for allegedly demanded and received money in exchange for contracts with public money.