Romanian prosecutor detained on blackmail, disclosure of classified information

Stancescu Raluca, a first prosecutor at the Prosecutor's Office attached to the Botosani Tribunal, was detained for 24 hours on charges of blackmail, incitement to favoring the perpetrator, incitement to compromising the interests of justice, and disclosure of secret or non-public classified information. Another defendant in this case, Stavara Catalin, was also arrested for 24 hours on blackmail charges. Both Stancescu and Stavara can be placed under a 30-day preventive arrest if the court approves the anticorruption prosecutor’s request in this sense. Batca Constantin, a police officer within the Botosani Police Department, was also placed under judicial control for 60 days in the same case, being charged with favoring the offender, forgery in repeated form, and compromising the interests of justice. In October 2015, the first prosecutor Stancescu Raluca and Stavara Catalin tried to make a person give up his property rights over an apartment and a studio in Botosani, in favor of a relative of the defendant Stavra Catalin, according to the National Anticorruption Department (DNA). The two tried to make that person fear that if he would refuse to give up his property rights he would be prosecuted for alleged crimes of tax evasion and human trafficking. Moreover, between October 2015 and February 2016, Stancescu Raluca allegedly determined police officer Batca Constantin to delay his investigations in a criminal case against Stavara Catalin, in which he was accused of harassment or other violence acts. The prosecutors also said that, on June 22, 2016, Stancescu Raluca disclosed confidential data resulted from the technical supervision of a person to Stavara. The surveillance was part of a criminal case investigation. Several other people are being investigated in this case. Two prosecutors dismissed from Romania’s anticorruption department Irina Marica, irina.marica@romania-insider.com