Moldovan Leftists Protest Arrests In Prosecutor's Office

Several hundred people protested in the Moldovan capital, Chisinau, against the October 5 suspension of Prosecutor-General Alexandru Stoianoglo in an event organized by the Communist and Socialist parties on October 10.

The protesters chanted slogans against President Maia Sandu, accusing her of seeking to control the prosecutor’s office for political purposes.

Another, smaller demonstration was held in Comrat.

Stoianoglo was detained as part of the new government's pledge to combat corruption and "clean up" the judiciary.

On October 9, one of Stoianoglo's deputies, Ruslan Popov, was also detained and suspended in connection with the probe.

Deputy prosecutor Iurie Perevoznic, who had also been suspended, announced on Facebook on October 9 that he had resigned two days earlier and that his resignation had been accepted on October 8.

"As a former colleague, I am addressing the prosecutors who are handling these cases and imploring them to stop," Perevonic wrote.

Following Stoianoglo's detention, anti-corruption prosecutor Victor Furtuna said the prosecutor-general was under investigation for abuse of office, corruption, and making false statements.

Sandu praised the move, calling for "strict respect for the law, no abuses, and lawfully punishing whomever committed abuses."

Stoianoglo was appointed in 2019 by former President Igor Dodon.

Dodon wrote on Facebook that Sandu's government was making a "fatal political mistake."

“Today we are convinced how dangerous it is for the rule of law when a dictatorship camouflages itself in democracy and the usurpation of power hides behind pro-European slogans," he wrote on Facebook.