Gagauzia Governor Evghenia Gutul and Svetlana Popan, the former secretary of the Shor Party, have been transferred to Prison No. 7 – Rusca. Gutul and Popan received sentences of seven and six years in prison respectively for complicity in the illegal financing of the former Shor Party and an electoral candidate backed by Ilan Shor.
The National Administration of Penitentiaries (ANP) press officer, Olga Baciu, confirmed the information to Realitatea.md.
According to Baciu, authorities transferred Gutul on Tuesday, August 4, while Popan was transferred earlier, on Wednesday, July 22. The two women are being held separately and are not in the same cell.
Gutul was sentenced by a first-instance court on August 5 to seven years in prison, while Popan received a six-year sentence for their alleged involvement in illegally financing the former Shor Party and an electoral candidate supported by Ilan Shor. Prosecutors estimate the value of the transactions at 42.5 million lei.
According to prosecutors, Gutul actively participated in the systematic transportation of funds from the Russian Federation to Moldova. Authorities claim that the money was used to support the Shor Party, which the Constitutional Court of Moldova later declared unconstitutional.
On March 25, Gutul was detained at the airport in a separate case related to the alleged mismanagement of electoral funds, illegal financing, and false statements during the 2023 Gagauzia elections.