The Center of Investigative Journalism (CIJM) regards as abuse and violation of the principle of freedom of the media and the values ​​of a democratic state and the rule of law, but also of a transparent justice, the conclusion of the judge Djeta Chistol from the Chisinau Court to examine the file of the prosecutor Igor Popa for false information in the statement on property, behind closed doors, in order not to admit the journalists of the Center for Investigative Journalism to the trial. The criminal case against the prosecutor Igor Popa was started based on a journalistic investigation by the Center for Investigative Journalism, which revealed that the prosecutor resorted to a divorce to hide his properties and assets registered in the name of his ex-wife, with which in fact he still lived.

The Chisinau District Court based in Buiucani decided to examine the criminal file against the former prosecutor Igor Popa in closed session in order not to admit the presence of the cameraman of the Center for Investigative Journalism Anatol Matasaru and the investigative reporter Julieta Savițchi.

Igor Popa and his lawyers argued their approach by the fact that "civic activists [Anatol Matăsaru - n.r.] and certain specific journalists [investigative reporter Julieta Savițchi - n.r.] would be malicious and have the status of witnesses in another criminal case that was started against him [former prosecutor - n.r.] for illicit enrichment at the criminal investigation stage", reads a press release from the General Prosecutor's Office.

The CIJM considers that this action of the magistrate is an abuse and a serious violation of the values of a democratic society. In fact, it is a revenge of the former prosecutor Igor Popa and his wife, Ala Popa, who, in this way, are trying to penalize once again the journalists who carried out an investigation on the basis of which two criminal cases on illicit enrichment and false information in the statement on property were started.

The CIJM points out that files on cases of corruption and illicit enrichment should be public and, under no circumstances, should journalists' participation in these processes be restricted.

CIJM states that these actions are part of a series of pressures, harassments from the lawyer Ala Popa, which have not stopped for more than two years.

The harassment started from the moment when the journalists from CIJM started documenting the journalistic investigation about the undeclared properties of the prosecutor Igor Popa. Complaints were filed with the National Center for the Protection of Personal Data and with the Police for accessing personal property data at the Cadastre Registry.

After the publication of the investigation, the prosecutor's wife filed complaints with the Press Council, and the Police started a criminal case, which, after a year, resulted in the non-initiation of the criminal prosecution.

However, later, a judge canceled  the prosecutor's order not to start the criminal investigation, ordering the resumption of the criminal process, which, according to several lawyers, would have meant starting a criminal case.

Several media institutions, non-governmental organizations and representatives of some public institutions have expressed their solidarity with CIJM journalists and qualified the decision of the investigative judge as pressure on investigative journalists.

On this fact, CIJM submitted several reports to the General Prosecutor's Office, the Superior Council of the Magistracy, to the Parliament's Culture, Education, Research, Youth, Sport and Mass-Media Commission in order to intervene, within the limits of its powers, so that these docile instruments, including the unjustified declaration of closed-door examination of the processes where the presence of certain journalists is not desired, cannot be used to the detriment of the freedom of the media, the litigants and the public interest.

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Team of the Center of Investigative Journalists

June 27, 2022