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The High Court of Cassation and Justice ruled on Monday to terminate criminal proceedings against businessman Dorin Cocos, who had been sentenced to three years in prison under a first-instance ruling for influence peddling in a case of illegal restitutions at the National Property Restitution Authority (ANRP); the initial sentence was struck down because of the expiry of the limitation period for the deeds.
Others to get away from serving time are Crinuta Dumitrean (former member of ANRP's Central Property Compensation Committee - sentenced to 7 years and 6 months in prison by the first-instance court), Sergiu Diacomatu (former member of the same committee - 7 years and 6 months), and businessman Gheorghe Stelian, who received a 6-year sentence.
The sentences had been handed down in June 2018 by a panel of three judges but were quashed now by a top court panel which applied a Constitutional Court decision regarding the statute of limitations.
The magistrates also upheld the first-instance acquittal decisions for former head of the Department for the Investigation of Organised Crime and Terrorism (DIICOT) Alina Bica, Dorin Cocos' son Alin Cocos, Catalin Teodorescu, Remus Baciu, Emil Nutiu (assessor), Oana Vasilescu, Lacramioara Alexandru, Dragos Bogdan and Ionut Florentin Mihailescu (former advisor to the head of DIICOT).
However, the judges upheld the special freezing order for 10 million euros from Dorin Cocos.
In addition, Emil Nutiu must pay jointly with Crinuta Dumitrean, Sergiu Diacomatu and Gheorghe Stelian civil compensations in amount of 218 million RON (approximately 43 million euros), updated by the inflation index.
The decision is final.
In the ANRP case, Alina Bica was accused of accepting bribe and abuse of office with particularly serious consequences, an act committed in her then capacity as Secretary of state and Justice Ministry representative in ANRP's Central Property Compensation Committee. AGERPRES
