Judges reject prosecutors’ request to block Romanian insurer’s bankruptcy

The judges of the High Court of Cassation and Justice rejected yesterday the request of the National Anticorruption Directorate (DNA) related to the bankruptcy of the local insurer Carpatica Asig. DNA had requested the court to block the insurer from going bankrupt as Carpatica Asig is involved in a corruption case DNA currently investigates. However, the judges dismissed the request as “unfounded”. The court’s decision is not final and can be challenged, reports local Mediafax. The Financial Supervisory Authority (ASF) withdrew the insurer's operating license at the end of July. The DNA prosecutors argued that the company would be quickly liquidated and dissolved if the court confirmed its bankruptcy. This means that the insurer could no longer be held responsible in a criminal case. Carpatica Asig and its main shareholder Ilie Carabulea were sent to court for charges of buying influence and bribery at the end of April 2014. A court sentenced Carpatica Asig to pay a RON 600,000 penal fine, but the company filed an appeal. The case is still pending. editor@romania-insider.com