Concerning the criminal case presented by the press release no. 494/VIII/3 fromMarch 13 2015, regarding alleged offences assimilated to those of corruptioncommitted to the energy companies Turceni and Rovinari in connection with theclosing of several legal assistance contracts, theOffice for Information and PublicRelationsisauthorizedtostateasfollows:

1.TheprosecutorsoftheSectionforCombatingtheOffencesAssimilatedtoThoseofCorruptionhaveorderedthestartofthecriminalinvestigationagainstPontaVictorViorel, who was a lawyer at the time the offences were committed, the legalrepresentativeofthePrivateLegalPracticePontaVictorViorelandwhoiscurrentlythe Prime Minister of Romania. Ponta VictorViorel has been charged with thefollowingoffences:

forgeryofdocumentsusingthepersonalsignature(17offences)complicitytotaxevasioncommittedthroughrepeatedactsmoneylaundering

The prosecutors ordinance shows that there are data and clues leading to thereasonablesuspicionthatasignificantamountofthemoneyobtainedbySCAovaandAssociates from the twoenergycompanies (TurceniandRovinari)wasmeantexclusivelyforthepersonalinterestofovaDanComanandhisentourage.

On May 6 2015, while investigating the aspects regarding the contractualconnectionsofthelawfirmSCAovaandAssociates,theprosecutorsorderedtherelevant fiscal authority to submit all the existing documents regarding the fiscal

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CumsunnenglezThecriminalinvestigationagainstthePrimeMinister

Autor:DenisaMiron,Colaborator

Publicat:06/06/2015

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inspectionactivitiesconductedtotheprivatelegalpracticePontaVictorViorel.Once these documentswere analyzed, taking into consideration the evidence thathadalreadybeengathered,thefollowingstateoffactsresulted:

OnAugust30 2007,aprofessionalcollaborationagreementwasconcludedbetweenSCAovaandAssociatesrepresentedbyovaDanComanandthePrivateLegalPractice PontaVictorViorel representedbyPontaVictorViorel.Theobjectof thisagreement was for the two parties to collaborate in the cases dealing with penalissues, business criminal law, aswell as other cases if necessary.The agreementwas concluded for an unlimited period of time and for the professional activitiesconductedincollaborationitprovidedforthefeestobereceivedbythelawfirmandthelawyerPontaVictorViorelhadtoreceiveafixedamountof2,000,forwhichthelatterhadtoissueamonthlyinvoice.StartingwithApril2008,anaddendumto theagreementwas introduced increasingtheamountto3,000/monthasfeeforthelawyerPontaVictorViorel.The collaboration agreement ended in December 2008 when Ponta VictorViorelbecameaminister.For the alleged activities conducted in collaboration, the lawyerPontaVictorViorelissued a number of 17 fiscal invoices amounting to 181,439.98 lei duringOctober2007December2008.The invoices were submitted for settlement to the law firm SCA ova andAssociates which paid after registering them into the accounting books. Theamounts for the 17 invoices represent expenditures which are not based on realoperations, considering that, in fact, Ponta VictorViorel did not perform anyprofessional activity basedon this collaboration agreement.ovaDanComanwastheonlypersonentitledtoissueordersregardinganyactionsofanynatureinvolvingthelawfirm.Subsequently, after several fiscal controls conducted during May October 2011,PontaVictorViorelhadanunderstandingwithovaDanComanforthelattertodrawup legal activity reportswithin the law firm, activities allegedly performedbyPontaVictorViorel, during the 16 months representing the duration of the collaborationagreement.Considering that Ponta VictorViorels legal training was in criminal law, it wasdecidedfortheseactivitiestoinvolvelegalassistanceincriminalcasesinconnectionwiththeclientsofthelawfirm.Thus,duringAugust2011,16suchdocumentsweredrawnupcorrespondingtoeachmonthfromtheintervalSeptember2007December2008.The16documentsfalsifiedbyPontaVictorViorelweretypedusingcopypasteafterthe pattern of the documents regarding the legal activity carried out by severallawyers fromSCA ova andAssociates, lawyerswho stated that they had never

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collaboratedwith Ponta VictorViorel. In reality, Ponta VictorViorel did not performanyofthoseactivities,noteveninpart.Ponta VictorViorel used some of the money received from SCA ova andAssociates to buy two luxury apartments in a residential complex located inBucharest.DuringNovember11 2008June2009,PontaVictorViorelhadalsootherbenefitsfrom the law firm, consisting in being given the right to use for free a vehicleMitsubishiLancerEvo10.Duringall this time, the law firmpaid thedownpayment(37,027.41 lei), the leasing installments (approximately 6,000 lei/month) and otherfeestotheleasingcompany,amountingto79,641.11lei.InJune2009,PontaVictorVioreltookovertheleasingforthecarwithoutpayinganymoneytothelawfirm.ThecarwaspurchasedbythelawfirmovaandAssociates,followingPontaVictorViorelsexpressrequest.

ThesuspectPontaVictorViorelwas informedabouthis legal statusandabout theabovementionedcharges,accordingtoarticle307oftheCriminalProcedureCode.

2. In thesamecase, theprosecutorshaveconcludedthat thecriminal investigationagainstPontaVictorViorelmustalsocontinuefortheperpetrationofthreeoffencesof conflictof interests, one of thembeing committed through repeated acts (twodeeds), the deedsbeing in connectionwith his capacity asPrimeMinister ofRomania, considering that, currently, there are aspects which lead to thereasonablesuspicionshowingthefollowingstateoffacts:

In his capacity as PrimeMinister of Romania, Ponta VictorViorel appointed ovaDanComan in August 2012 as minister for the Relation with the Parliament, inDecember2012asdelegatedminister for infrastructureprojectsofnational interestand foreign investments, inFebruary2014as interimminister ofTransportsand inMarch2014,asministerofTransports,consideringthatPontaVictorViorelhadhadbenefits inthepast fromovaDanComan,consistingofsumsofmoney(atotalofapproximately250,000lei)andtherighttouseacarforfree.The evidence showed that during October 2007 December 2008, Ponta VictorViorel benefited monthly from sums of money between 7,900 lei and 14,000lei,amounting to a total of 181,439.89 lei, based on some fictive professionalcollaborationagreementsconcludedbetweenovaandAssociates,representedbyovaDanComanandthePrivateLegalPracticePontaVictorViorelrepresentedbyPonta VictorViorel, and during November 2008 June 2009 the current PrimeMinisterbenefitedforfreefromtherighttousethecarMitsubishiLancerEvo10,purchasedbySCAovaandAssociatesinfinancial leasingfromRomstalLeasing(the installmentsamountingtoapproximately6,000 lei/month),andsubsequently, in

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June2009,hebenefitedfromsumsofmoneyrepresentingthedownpaymentsand other expenses required by the leasing contract. Thus, at the time PontaVictorVioreltookovertheleasing,thetotalsumamountedto79,641.11lei.

Therefore,accordingtothe legalandconstitutionalprovisions, theChiefProsecutorofDNAis initiating theprocedureofnotifying theChamberofDeputies, fordrawinguptherequestsofcarryingoutthecriminalinvestigationagainstPontaVictorViorel, Deputy, who was a Prime Minister in the interval of time when heallegedlycommittedtheoffencesofconflictofinterests.Itshouldbementionedthatthecarryingoutofthecriminalinvestigationrepresentsastage of the criminal proceedings regulated by the Criminal Procedure Code, anactivitywhichcannot,underanycircumstances,infringetheprincipleofpresumptionofinnocence.

PS: Comunicatul demai sus al DNA este singurul tradus i n englez din cele 4comunicatedeieri.

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