IMPARȚIALITATE·INTEGRITATE·EFICIENȚĂ
February, 24th, 2022
No. 156/VIII/3
Activity Summary Report 2021
Despite an extremely difficult situation caused by the COVID-19 pandemic, the activity of the National Anticorruption Directorate in 2021 has improved on most statistical indicators compared to the previous year: more cases and more defendants sent to trial, more people with high-ranking public positions sent to trial, more complaints about possible corruption, while the number of acquittal decisions has decreased and the stockpile of files has been reduced. Investigations into corruption cases and cases assimilated to those of corruption have been carried out, the estimated damage of which is 8,164 million lei, of which, during the criminal investigation, the amount of 209 million lei has already been recovered.
Findings
More complaints received from citizens, legal entities or public institutions (2139 by 15% more than last year), which indicates an increase in citizens' trust.
More cases and a substantial increase in the number of defendants sent to trial (730 defendants, i.e. an increase of 44.5% compared to the previous year).
More people with positions of leadership, control and public dignity sent to trial, including 18 dignitaries (seven members of Parliaments, including a Speaker of the Chamber of Deputies, two ministers and a former Prime Minister, three Secretaries of State and an Under-Secretary of State, a Prefect, two presidents and a vice-president of the County Council), which shows a focus on complex, high-level corruption cases, specific to the competence of the National Anticorruption Directorate.
Increase in the number of defendants sent to trial under pre-trial detention (40 defendants compared to 29 defendants arrested in the previous year).
More cases have been sent to trial concerning offences of taking and giving bribe, abuse of office and offences against the EU financial interests (the number of offences of taking and giving bribe has exceeded twice the number of offences in 2020, and in the case of fraud involving European funds the number of offences sent to trial has reached 235)
Decrease in the number of acquittals compared to the number of indictments and compared to the total number of defendants tried in 2021, acquittals ruled on other grounds than the lack of concrete social danger and the decisions of the Constitutional Court with decriminalization effect
Fewer cases remained unresolved at the end of the year
Recovering the damage resulting from the commission of the offenses was an essential component.
During 2021, precautionary measures were ordered, up to a total amount of over 632 million lei in cases that were solved with indictments.
The courts also ruled 255 judgments on 427 convicted defendants.
Significant risks and vulnerabilities in the activity of the National Anticorruption Directorate.
The deficit in the number of prosecutors persists at the end of 2021 (47 compared to the planned scheme), as an effect of maintaining the seniority conditions introduced in 2018 by amending the laws of justice.
The COVID-19 pandemic affected operational activity (91 cases of illness or direct contact of infected people, with isolation or quarantine measures for various periods of time). At the same time, there were deferred or rescheduled criminal investigation acts depending on the epidemiological situation of the persons involved in the cases (witnesses, suspects, defendants, experts, lawyers, etc.).
The creation of a non-unitary practice and the loss of the competence of the D.N.A. of some cases, by the impossibility of continuing the investigations in the disjointed cases.
Other considerations
During 2021, the registration and solving of cases related to crimes within the competence of the National Anticorruption Directorate in connection with the COVID-19 pandemic continued.
Thus, out of the 175 files registered from the date of declaring the state of emergency (respectively from 16 March 2020) to 31 December 2021, there were still 89 criminal cases pending in connection with the COVID-19 pandemic. In 2021, 27 cases were solved, out of which in 7 cases regarding 19 defendants 3 indictments and 4 plea bargaining agreements were ordered.
The presentation of the Activity Report of the National Anticorruption Directorate for 2021, by the Chief Prosecutor, Mr. Crin Bologa, took place at the institution's headquarters, on February 24, 2022, at 11:00, in compliance with the public health recommendations in the current epidemiological context.
The presentation was attended by the Minister of Justice Cătălin Predoiu and representatives of the judiciary: the Prosecutor General of the Prosecutor's Office attached to the High Court of Cassation and Justice (P.Î.CCJ) Gabriela Scutea, Vice President of the Superior Council of Magistracy (SCM) Nicolae-Andrei Solomon, members of the Superior Council of Magistracy prosecutors Cristian Mihai Ban, Florin Deac and Tatiana Toader. Also present were representatives of the management of the National Anticorruption Directorate, the chief prosecutors of the section and services, and through an internal video-conferencing system, the chief prosecutors of the territorial services, as well as all the prosecutors of the institution in the central structure and territory.
On the same day, the annual activity report was presented to the media during a press conference held at 15:00.
THE INFORMATION AND PUBLIC RELATIONS OFFICE