Wiretaps deemed unconstitutional in 11 corruption cases in Romania

The recent decision of the Constitutional Court on using wiretaps made by the Romanian Intelligence Service – SRI in criminal investigations has an impact on the national security, said the SRI director Eduard Hellvig. Interceptions used as evidence in eleven cases of corruption have been challenged starting February 16. The defendants’ lawyers said that these interceptions were unconstitutional, reports local Mediafax. The Constitutional Court recently ruled that SRI’s involvement in local criminal investigations was illegal. The Court’s motivation was that SRI’s role was only to ensure national security and that the service had no prerogatives in criminal investigations. The decision changes the rules for criminal investigations in Romania and may impact thousands of ongoing corruption and organized crime investigations as well as cases already sent to court. The main prosecution bodies, DNA and DIICOT, as well as the Police, will have to invest a lot in technical equipment and people. editor@romania-insider.com