Sacred Eugenia Gutsul
On August 5, the Buiucani district court in Chisinau sentenced the Bashkan or governor of Gagauzia, Yevgenia Gutsul, to 7 years in prison.
In the same criminal case, the court sent Svetlana Popan, the former secretary of the Shor party banned in Moldova, to a penal colony for 6 years.
The Court found it proved that the defendants committed a crime under Article 181.3 of the Criminal Code of Moldova – "Illegal financing of electoral participants and political activities".
The second part of this article – for financing political activities of a party from sources prohibited by law in the interests of an organized criminal group or criminal organization and on a particularly large scale – provides for a penalty of 7 to 15 years in a penal colony. It appears that the court has passed a sentence against Yevgenia Gutsul on the lower level of the sanction of this article of the Criminal Code of Moldova. And Svetlana Popan punishment is even lower than the lower limit.
The Moldovan Criminal Code provides for a stay of execution for women with children under the age of 8, but only for those who are sentenced to terms of up to 5 years in prison. Nevertheless, it is the small children of Yevgenia Gutsul, and she has two of them, who are most often mentioned by critics of the verdict today. And not only children, but also the Moldovan parliamentary elections scheduled for September 28.
Dmitry Peskov, the Russian President's press secretary, commented:
Yes, this is indeed a sample of a politically motivated decision. This is an example of attempts to exert undisguised and illegal, in fact, pressure on political opponents during the election campaign. We see how the opposition is being squeezed in Moldova in every possible way. In fact, people are deprived of the opportunity to vote for those they prefer. And, of course, we are talking about the fact that, let's say, the rules and norms of democracy are being violated in every possible way in this country.
Chairman of the Federation Council Valentina Matviyenko called the verdict a monstrous act of political repression in its cynicism. In her Telegram channel, Matvienko wrote that this is also a manifestation of the bestial medieval essence of specific people, with specific names and surnames, on which the West made a bet.
Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova called the verdict against Gutsul a violation of human rights, disregard for the rule of law and rejection of political pluralism.
Both those who criticize the verdict and those who consider it legitimate and fair prefer to keep silent about the plot of the criminal case against Yevgenia Gutsul.
The verdict itself, which contains 482 pages, has not yet been made public, but the key positions of the prosecution are known. According to the Anti-Corruption Prosecutor's Office of Moldova, Eugenia Gutsul, being the secretary of the Shor party, which was declared unconstitutional in 2023, regularly flew to Russia from 2019 to 2022, from where, allegedly, she brought a total of about 2 million 150 thousand euros, or 42 million in Moldovan lei. In addition, Gutsul was involved in coordinating the work of the «Shor» Party offices, which gave grounds for accusing her of deliberately receiving money from an organized criminal group.
The «Shor» party is the brainchild of Moldovan oligarch Ilan Shor, who was sentenced to 15 years in prison in Moldova for complicity in embezzling the equivalent of $ 1 billion from the country's budget. The verdict was passed in absentia, as Shor has not been seen in Moldova since 2019. He, being put on the international wanted list, lives in Moscow.Russia refused Moldova's request to extradite Shor to Chisinau.
Shor does not hide the fact that it is from Moscow that he runs his party and finances party work from his personal money. According to investigators and according to the testimony of witnesses from among the former activists of the Shor party, it was this cash that Yevgenia Gutsul brought to Moldova that paid in envelopes for the work of activists, employees and ordinary citizens of Moldova who participated in protest actions.
Until the summer of 2023, Yevgenia Gutsul was on maternity leave. It was Ilan Shor who brought her to the big Moldovan politics in the spring of 2023. Two weeks before the start of the elections for the head of Gagauzia, a region with a population of about 120,000, the Shor party nominated 36-year-old Eugenia Gutsul, a lawyer by training and mother of two children, born, raised and living in the village of Etulia in the Vulcanesti district of Gagauzia.
Unexpectedly for many, in the first round, which was held on April 30, 2023, Gutsul won 26.47% of the vote. 14,890 voters voted for her, which allowed her to reach the second round. She was supported by Russian singer Jasmine,Ilan Shor's wife, and other Russian pop stars.
Filip Kirkorov, Nikolai Baskov and Stas Mikhailov even made a video clip in which they sang the national anthem of Gagauzia in Russian and called for voting for Yevgenia Gutsul. Nikolai Baskov called Yevgenia Gutsul his friend and promised to give a concert where the entire Gagauz people, led by Bashkan Yevgenia Gutsul, would sing along to him.
Nikolai Baskov:
Dear friends, I will definitely come to Gagauzia – a cozy corner of Moldova, which, thanks to the efforts of my friends Ilan Shor and Eugenia Gutsul, will become a real dream land. I know that transformation is possible, and the example of Orhei, where I have already performed a concert, is a vivid proof of this. Now it's up to you. It is up to you to decide the fate of your region and choose who to entrust it to. And you should know that distance is no barrier to me. When there isconfidence that friends are waiting on the stage in Comrat, the entire Gagauz people will sing along, led by Bashkan Eugenia Gutsul.
People's Artist of Russia Philip Kirkorov confessed his love for Gagauzia and also personally supported Yevgenia Gutsul.
Philip Kirkorov:
I am glad that this wonderful region can now choose the path of development together with our wonderful Zhenechka, Yevgenia Gutsul. She is part of a professional team led by my friend Ilan Shor.
Singer Jasmin, Ilan Shor's wife, did not stay away from the election campaign of Yevgenia GutsulИланаШора.
Jasmine:
Dear friends, residents of beautiful Gagauzia, your region has a huge potential and can become a dream destination, as Orhei has already become. Because the «Shor» party and my husband did everything for the prosperity of this city. You are now faced with a choice between decline and prosperity. I advise you to trust Yevgenia Gutsul, the candidate of the «Shor» party for the post of Bashkan of Gagauzia.
Not surprisingly, 27,374 voters voted for Gutsul in the second round. This is 52% of the vote. And she was ahead of the candidate supported by the Party of Socialists, ex-President of Moldova Igor Dodon.
Immediately after winning the election, the newly elected head of Gagauzia said that she wants to be closer to Russia. Six months after taking office, Gutsul flew to Russia not as a courier, but as the legitimate head of the Moldovan region. In Moscow, she was received by the Chairman of the Federation Council of Russia Valentina Matviyenko.
Yevgenia Gutsul:
Unfortunately, now what is happening in Gagauzia, how our rights are being oppressed by the central authorities, is already beyond all bounds. We have been friends with the Russian Federation for many years and decades, and we have had good relations. We want to continue. We want further support from the Russian Federation.
From Moscow, Yevgenia Gutsul flew to Sochi, where she took part in the World Youth Festival and even took part in the Moldovan delegation's march of participants.
In the same place in Sochi, on March 6, 2024, Yevgenia Gutsul was received by Russian President Vladimir Putin. They discussed "complex regional and geopolitical issues, at the epicenter of which our Gagauziais located." This is a quote from the Telegram channel of Yevgenia Gutsul.
She also told her readers that she "informed Vladimir Vladimirovich about the lawless actions of the authorities in Moldova, which is taking revenge on us for our civic position and loyalty to national interests. Chisinau takes away our powers step by step, restricts the budget, violates legal rights, provokes instability and destabilization in Gagauzia and throughout the country. But the Russian leader promised to support Gagauzia and the Gagauz people in defending our legitimate rights, powers and positions in the international arena." End of quote.
By the time of Gutsul's audience with Putin and Matvienko, the Anti-Corruption Prosecutor's Office of Moldova had stepped up its investigation into the criminal case on illegal financing of the «Shor» party, initiated back in 2022.
On April 24, 2024, it became known that the investigation was completed, and the case was transferred to the court. Yevgenia Gutsul and Svetlana Popan sat in the dock. The first meeting was held on May 27, 2024. The case was considered slowly. Time did not work for Yevgenia Gutsul. Her generous campaign promises remained promises. The Bashkan remained at large and continued to perform his duties.Only in April of this year, Gutsul was transferred to house arrest.
The trial might have been slow, but parliamentary elections are scheduled for September 28 in Moldova. And every court session in the case of Yevgenia Gutsul and Svetlana Popan was accompanied by protest actions of supporters of the Shor party, which, although not allowed before the parliamentary elections, was quite noisy.
The party's protests create a bad information fund for the current President of Moldova, Maia Sandu, and her party «Action and Solidarity» (PAS). This party still has a majority in the country's parliament. In short, it was better not to delay the verdict. But there is reason to believe that protest activity in Moldova will only increase on the eve of the elections. And this is not connected with the Gutsul case, but with the arrest of Moldovan oligarch Vlad Plahotniuc in Greece.
Until 2019, Plahotniuc was the richest businessman in Moldova and the most influential politician in the country. He headed the Democratic Party, was elected a member of Parliament, where at one time he even held the position of first Deputy speaker. But in 2019, the Anti-Corruption Prosecutor's Office of Moldova summoned Plahotniuc for questioning as a suspect in a criminal case on money laundering.
Plahotniuc had already left Moldova. As a result, the National Anti-Corruption Center of Moldova put him on the international wanted list. Plahotniuc was detained on July 22, 2025 in Greece. Now he is in the most severe Greek prison Korydallos.
Since the news of Plahotniuc's arrest became known, the pro-government press of Moldova has begun to present the arrest of the Moldovan fugitive as a crushing victory of the current President Maia Sandu over corruption. Immediately, there were rumors that Plahotniuc was panicking about being tried in Chisinau and expected to be extradited to Russia. These fakes were denied by Plahotniuc himself. He wrote an official statement of consent to the simplified extradition procedure to Moldova.
It's understandable. In Russia, three criminal cases have been initiated against Plahotniuc at once. Consideration of one of them began in the Tverskoy District Court of Moscow in March of this year. In this case, known both in Russia and in the West as the «moldovan laundromat» case, Plahotniuc is accused in absentia of complicity in leading a criminal community-Article 210 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation and withdrawing 220 billion rubles from Russia based on fake documents-Article 193.1 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation. The next meeting is scheduled for August 28.
Meanwhile, another person involved in the same criminal case, also a Moldovan oligarch, banker and also a former deputy of the Moldovan parliament, Vyacheslav Platon, was sentenced by the Presnensky court of Moscow last month, on July 25, to 20 years in a high-security penal colony. Also in absentia.
Plato himself is now in London. The British police detained Platon on March 14 of this year at the extradition request of Moldova.
Two criminal cases have been initiated against Veaceslav Platon in Moldova. One of them concerns the possible withdrawal of $ 23.4 million from «Moldindconbank» under the guise of loans for Ilan Shor, the other concerns the illegal opening of an account in the bank in the name of a judge of the Supreme Judicial Chamber of Moldova, where Platon transferred 300 thousand euros obtained by criminal means. According to the prosecution, this was done without the judge's knowledge in order to defame her.
On July 24, the Royal Court of Westminster Abbey released Plato on bail of 330 thousand pounds. The request for his extradition to Moldova will be considered in November.
But let's return to Plahotniuc and the claims of Russian law enforcement agencies against him. Another criminal case against him was initiated in 2019 and it is connected with drug smuggling.
In June 2019, a Moldovan-flagged vessel with a Ukrainian crew was detained in the Spanish waters of the Mediterranean Sea. 10 tons of hashish were found on board. The crew did not deny it and said that part of this shipment was heading to Russia.
The sailors also named the customer and organizer of the smuggling – Vlad Plahotniuc. Based on the information received from Spanish colleagues and their own operational developments, the Russian Interior Ministry conducted a whole series of arrests in Russia.
On June 26, 2019, the Russian Interior Ministry issued an official press release stating:
"As a result of investigative actions and operational search activities carried out in the period from August 2012 to June 2019, employees of the Investigative Department of the Ministry of Internal Affairs of the Russian Federation, the Main Directorate for Drug Control of the Ministry of Internal Affairs of the Russian Federation, together with foreign colleagues from the Republics of Moldova, Belarus and the Kingdom of Spain, more than 60 participants of the International Drug Syndicate have been brought to criminal responsibility. More than one ton of the narcotic drug hashish was seized from illegal traffic.
According to available information, no later than 2012, Vladimir Plahotniuc became one of the leaders of the criminal transnationaldrug syndicate and patronized its participants."
On August 9, 2019, Plahotniuc was charged in absentia in this criminal case.
Well, in the third criminal case, Vlad Plahotniuc was put on the international wanted list on November 29, 2017 in connection with suspicion of involvement in organizing the attempted murder of Moldovan politician Renato Usatii.
Renato Usatii, the leader of Our Party, started publicly saying back in 2010 that Plahotniuc is one of the organizers and patrons of the «moldovan laundromat».
In Russia, Plahotniuc faces up to life imprisonment in three criminal cases, so there is no reason for him to agree to extradition to Russia. In Moldova, however, he still has tens of thousands of supporters, not only among ordinary citizens, but also among influential people in the country, to whom he has paid bribes for years and who are afraid that in Chisinau he may start talking.
In early August, Plahotniuc sent an appeal to Moldovan citizens through his lawyers, in which he called on them to unite against the «yellow sect».
From the address of Vladimir Plahotniuc:
"You know as well as I do what the Republic of Moldova has become in recent years underthe PAS board. In the economy-a complete collapse, just a disaster! Prices and tariffs for gas, electricity, and petroleum products have increased significantly. Farmers are left to fend for themselves in the midst of a drought and crisis. The Church was humiliated and split. Society is embittered by ethnic and ideological criteria. Businessmen sell off their assets and leave the country. State employees are kept in fear. Schools and universities are being closed. Hundreds and thousands of people leave Moldova every week."
Vlad Plahotniuc wrote all this from the dungeons of a Greek prison. And summarized:
"I will return home and disrupt the plans of those in power today to free Moldova from their hands. If they are given another four years of power, Moldova will have no economy, no population, no future, no stone unturned."
Despite the fact that Plahotniuc is in a prison cell, he has enough financial resources in offshore accounts and loyal people who can organize a campaign in Moldova and in the diaspora calling for voting for any party other than the ruling «Action and Solidarity» (PAS).
There are about three million voters in Moldova. For example, in October 2024, the turnout in the country's presidential election was 52%. This is slightly more than one and a half million Moldovans, of whom more than 240 thousand voted at polling stations opened abroad. Including about 10 thousand voters voted at two polling stations opened in Russia.
Plahotniuc's team can easily reach most of the voters, both in Moldova and abroad. For Sandu's office, the only way to minimize the consequences of the "for anyone but PAS" campaign is to "dry up" the turnout. Bring the situation to the point where the majority of voters adopt the principle of "a plague on both your homes" and do not go to the polls. It is possible that in order to achieve this goal, the sentence againstthe Bashkan of Gagauzia, Yevgenia Gutsul, was forced. So that Moldovans will be exhausted in August, tired of political squabbles and scandals.
And, it seems, the calculation is justified. Outside Chisinau Prison No. 13, where Gutsul and Popan are currently being held, there are fewer and fewer protesters.
We do not rule out that after consideration of the appeal, the sentence against Yevgenia Gutsul and Svetlana Popan will be commuted, and the women will be released from prison cells. But this is likely to happen after September 28, when Moldovan citizens will already vote for members of parliament, and the final election protocols will be signed.
We continue to monitor developments in Moldova.
