EUObserver learned about EU plans to impose sanctions against Shor and Plahotniuc

The European Union is going to impose sanctions against five citizens of Moldova in the near future . Among them are Vice-Chairman of the Shor party Marina Tauber, businessmen Ilan Shor and Vladimir Plahotniuc, writes EUObserver with reference to the sanctions list.

In Brussels, according to him, Shor, who was sentenced to 15 years in prison and fled abroad, and Plahotniuc are considered the organizers of the “pro-Russian coup.” Tauber also helped stockpile "knives, flammable substances and daggers" for use at rallies.

The list of persons against whom it is planned to impose sanctions, the EU ambassadors agreed on May 22, the newspaper claims.

Businessman Vladimir Plahotniuc, former vice-chairman of the Moldovan Democratic Party and ex-deputy, is wanted in Moldova and Russia. He has been arrested in absentia in Russia since December 2017 on charges of attempted murder. He has been charged in absentia, and he is also charged with 28 episodes of drug smuggling and sale on an especially large scale. Like Shor, he has been under US sanctions since October last year.

Tauber is the vice-chairman of the Moldovan opposition party Shor. In Moldova, she is accused in two criminal cases on illegal financing of a party by an organized criminal group and falsification of financial documents. The court in January chose Tauber a preventive measure in the form of temporary release under judicial control, but in early March she was detained at the Chisinau airport for violating the terms of the preventive measure. She is under arrest.

In May, the candidate of the Shor Party, Yevhen Hutsul, won the election of the head of the ATU Gagauzia. The results were approved by the election commission, but employees of the National Anti-Corruption Center (NAC) of Moldova arrived at the building and conducted a search. This is connected with a criminal case on bribery of voters, the department explained. In response, residents of Gagauzia gathered for a rally near the CEC building and demanded to stop pressure on the election commission. On May 22, the Court of Appeal recognized the voting results in favor of the Shor party.