Romania’s former Social Democrat leader Liviu Dragnea released on parole

Liviu Dragnea, the former leader of Romania's Social Democratic Party (PSD), will be released from prison after the judges from Giurgiu Court admitted his parole request. The court's decision is final, according to G4media.ro.

Dragnea was jailed on May 27, 2019, after the High Court of Cassation and Justice sentenced him to three years and six months in prison in the case of the fictitious hirings at the Teleorman Child Protection Service.

According to the case, Dragnea arranged that the county's Social and Child Protection Service hired two women who were, in fact, working at the PSD office in Teleorman. In other words, the public institution paid the two women, and they worked for the party. The damage, in this case, representing the salaries paid to the two women, was estimated at RON 108,000 (EUR 23,000).

In May this year, the Bucharest Tribunal rejected Dragnea's request for parole, but later, the Bucharest Court of Appeal overturned this decision and ordered the trial to be moved to the Giurgiu Court, according to Biziday.ro.

(Photo source: Inquam Photos/Lavinia Cioaca)