Former MP Sebastian Ghita spotted and arrested in Belgrade

Former MP Sebastian Ghita was located and seized by policemen on Thursday trough Friday night. 

"As a result of complex investigative activities and the information provided by the Special Operations Division and Criminal Investigations Directorate of the Romanian Police, during the night in Belgrade, defendant Ghita Sebastian Aurelian was located and seized. When discovered, the defendant provided false ID documents showing the marks of a EU state. The legal proceedings for such situations are currently underway," informs the Ministry of National Defence. 

Ploiesti Court of Appeal dismissed, on April 3, the appeal filed by former deputy Sebastian Ghita towards Prahova Court decision to issue a new arrest warrant in his name. 

The court ordered the provisional detention of Sebastian Ghita for setting up an organised crime group. According to the decision posted on the courts' portal, the magistrates rejected the former deputy's appeal as groundless. 

The court also upheld the National Anti-corruption Directorate (DNA) prosecutors' appeal and disposed Ghita's 30-day provisional detention for setting up an organised crime group, calculated from the enforcement date of the detention warrant. 

On March 15, Prahova Court issued an arrest warrant on former deputy Sebastian Ghita's name in the case in which he is being investigated by DNA Ploiesti for influence peddling, money laundering and setting up an organised crime group. According to the court's reasoning, the judge of peace of Prahova Court held that there is reasonable suspicion that Sebastian Ghita committed seven of the eight offenses for which DNA Ploiesti prosecutors have set in motion the criminal action towards the defendant. 

"The judge of rights and freedoms appreciates in the sense that, from the rules of evidence during the Public Ministry's prosecution, there is reasonable suspicion that the defendant perpetrated 7 (seven) of the eight (8) offenses for which the criminal action was set in motion, respectively 4 (four) crime of influence peddling and 3 (three) money laundering offenses. As regards the setting up of an organised crime group (...) the judge of rights and freedoms reasons that there is insufficient evidence to dispose of the provisional detention measure, the most severe of the preventive measures provided for in the Criminal Procedure Code," the document states. 

According to the source, certain aspects of the organised crime group creation have not been clarified yet. 

"Although there are suspicions this crime was perpetrated, several aspects regarding the criminal participation, the role within the organised crime group, its structure etc. have not been clarified yet, so that provisional detention cannot be also ruled for perpetrating this crime. As concerns the 4 (four) offenses of influence peddling and 3 (three) crimes of money laundering, the judge of rights and freedoms considers that there is reasonable suspicion that the defendant perpetrated these offenses," further shows the explanatory statement. 

On January 5, a panel of the Supreme Court (ICCJ) issued an arrest warrant in absentia in the name of Sebastian Ghita after he disappeared and never showed up at IPJ Prahova, violating the terms of the judicial control in the case in which he was sent to court with ex-chiefs of police and prosecutors' offices.