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CumsunnenglezThecriminalinvestigationagainstthePrimeMinister
Autor:DenisaMiron,Colaborator
Publicat:06/06/2015

Concerning the criminal case presented by the press release no. 494/VIII/3 from
March 13th2015, regarding alleged offences assimilated to those of corruption
committed to the energy companies Turceni and Rovinari in connection with the
closing of several legal assistance contracts, the Office for Information and Public
Relationsisauthorizedtostateasfollows:
1.TheprosecutorsoftheSectionforCombatingtheOffencesAssimilatedtoThoseof
CorruptionhaveorderedthestartofthecriminalinvestigationagainstPontaVictor
Viorel, who was a lawyer at the time the offences were committed, the legal
representativeofthePrivateLegalPracticePontaVictorViorelandwhoiscurrently
the Prime Minister of Romania. Ponta VictorViorel has been charged with the
followingoffences:
forgeryofdocumentsusingthepersonalsignature(17offences)
complicitytotaxevasioncommittedthroughrepeatedacts
moneylaundering
The prosecutors ordinance shows that there are data and clues leading to the
reasonablesuspicionthatasignificantamountofthemoneyobtainedbySCAova
andAssociates from the two energy companies (Turceni and Rovinari) was meant
exclusivelyforthepersonalinterestofovaDanComanandhisentourage.
On May 6th 2015, while investigating the aspects regarding the contractual
connectionsofthelawfirmSCAovaandAssociates,theprosecutorsorderedthe
relevant fiscal authority to submit all the existing documents regarding the fiscal

inspectionactivitiesconductedtotheprivatelegalpracticePontaVictorViorel.
Once these documents were analyzed, taking into consideration the evidence that
hadalreadybeengathered,thefollowingstateoffactsresulted:
OnAugust30th2007,aprofessionalcollaborationagreementwasconcludedbetween
SCAovaandAssociatesrepresentedbyovaDanComanandthePrivateLegal
Practice Ponta VictorViorel represented by Ponta VictorViorel. The object of this
agreement was for the two parties to collaborate in the cases dealing with penal
issues, business criminal law, as well as other cases if necessary. The agreement
was concluded for an unlimited period of time and for the professional activities
conductedincollaborationitprovidedforthefeestobereceivedbythelawfirmand
thelawyerPontaVictorViorelhadtoreceiveafixedamountof2,000,forwhichthe
latterhadtoissueamonthlyinvoice.
Starting withApril 2008, an addendum to the agreement was introduced increasing
theamountto3,000/monthasfeeforthelawyerPontaVictorViorel.
The collaboration agreement ended in December 2008 when Ponta VictorViorel
becameaminister.
For the alleged activities conducted in collaboration, the lawyer Ponta VictorViorel
issued a number of 17 fiscal invoices amounting to 181,439.98 lei during October
2007December2008.
The invoices were submitted for settlement to the law firm SCA ova and
Associates which paid after registering them into the accounting books. The
amounts for the 17 invoices represent expenditures which are not based on real
operations, considering that, in fact, Ponta VictorViorel did not perform any
professional activity based on this collaboration agreement. ova DanComan was
theonlypersonentitledtoissueordersregardinganyactionsofanynatureinvolving
thelawfirm.
Subsequently, after several fiscal controls conducted during May October 2011,
PontaVictorViorelhadanunderstandingwithovaDanComanforthelattertodraw
up legal activity reports within the law firm, activities allegedly performed by Ponta
VictorViorel, during the 16 months representing the duration of the collaboration
agreement.
Considering that Ponta VictorViorels legal training was in criminal law, it was
decidedfortheseactivitiestoinvolvelegalassistanceincriminalcasesinconnection
withtheclientsofthelawfirm.
Thus,duringAugust2011,16suchdocumentsweredrawnupcorrespondingtoeach
monthfromtheintervalSeptember2007December2008.
The16documentsfalsifiedbyPontaVictorViorelweretypedusingcopypasteafter
the pattern of the documents regarding the legal activity carried out by several
lawyers from SCA ova andAssociates, lawyers who stated that they had never

collaborated with Ponta VictorViorel. In reality, Ponta VictorViorel did not perform
anyofthoseactivities,noteveninpart.
Ponta VictorViorel used some of the money received from SCA ova and
Associates to buy two luxury apartments in a residential complex located in
Bucharest.
DuringNovember11th2008June2009,PontaVictorViorelhadalsootherbenefits
from the law firm, consisting in being given the right to use for free a vehicle
Mitsubishi Lancer Evo 10. During all this time, the law firm paid the down payment
(37,027.41 lei), the leasing installments (approximately 6,000 lei/month) and other
feestotheleasingcompany,amountingto79,641.11lei.InJune2009,PontaVictor
Vioreltookovertheleasingforthecarwithoutpayinganymoneytothelawfirm.
ThecarwaspurchasedbythelawfirmovaandAssociates,followingPontaVictor
Viorelsexpressrequest.
The suspect Ponta VictorViorel was informed about his legal status and about the
abovementionedcharges,accordingtoarticle307oftheCriminalProcedureCode.
2.Inthesamecase,theprosecutorshaveconcludedthatthecriminalinvestigation
againstPontaVictorViorelmustalsocontinuefortheperpetrationofthreeoffences
of conflict of interests, one of them being committed through repeated acts (two
deeds), the deeds being in connection with his capacity as Prime Minister of
Romania, considering that, currently, there are aspects which lead to the
reasonablesuspicionshowingthefollowingstateoffacts:
In his capacity as Prime Minister of Romania, Ponta VictorViorel appointed ova
DanComan in August 2012 as minister for the Relation with the Parliament, in
December 2012 as delegated minister for infrastructure projects of national interest
and foreign investments, in February 2014 as interim minister of Transports and in
March2014,asministerofTransports,consideringthatPontaVictorViorelhadhad
benefitsinthepastfromovaDanComan,consistingofsumsofmoney(atotalof
approximately250,000lei)andtherighttouseacarforfree.
The evidence showed that during October 2007 December 2008, Ponta Victor
Viorel benefited monthly from sums of money between 7,900 lei and 14,000
lei,amounting to a total of 181,439.89 lei, based on some fictive professional
collaborationagreementsconcludedbetweenovaandAssociates,representedby
ovaDanComanandthePrivateLegalPracticePontaVictorViorelrepresentedby
Ponta VictorViorel, and during November 2008 June 2009 the current Prime
MinisterbenefitedforfreefromtherighttousethecarMitsubishiLancerEvo10,
purchasedbySCAovaandAssociatesinfinancialleasingfromRomstalLeasing
(theinstallmentsamountingtoapproximately6,000lei/month),andsubsequently,in

June2009,hebenefitedfromsumsofmoneyrepresentingthedownpayments
and other expenses required by the leasing contract. Thus, at the time Ponta
VictorVioreltookovertheleasing,thetotalsumamountedto79,641.11lei.
Therefore,accordingtothelegalandconstitutionalprovisions,theChiefProsecutor
ofDNAisinitiatingtheprocedureofnotifyingtheChamberofDeputies,fordrawing
uptherequestsofcarryingoutthecriminalinvestigationagainstPonta Victor
Viorel, Deputy, who was a Prime Minister in the interval of time when he
allegedlycommittedtheoffencesofconflictofinterests.
Itshouldbementionedthatthecarryingoutofthecriminalinvestigationrepresentsa
stage of the criminal proceedings regulated by the Criminal Procedure Code, an
activitywhichcannot,underanycircumstances,infringetheprincipleofpresumption
ofinnocence.
PS: Comunicatul de mai sus al DNA este singurul tradus i n englez din cele 4
comunicatedeieri.

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