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Anonymous Photos on Viber
It all started when at the end of 2017 an anonymous person sent some pictures of a corpse via the Viber application to Victor Sofroni informing him that the images were made in the forest strip at the border between Rezina and Orhei districts. In order to verify the information, the journalist contacted the head of the Soldanesti Police Inspectorate, who, in turn, passed on the request to the Rezina Police Inspectorate. The police task force inspected the alleged murder site and did not detect any corpse. Subsequently, it was found that the pictures were taken from an Internet web page and were related to a case that took place in 2016 in the Russian Federation.
The Police Filed a Criminal Case, and the Prosecutor’s Office Reclassified the Case
As a result of this finding, on 4 January 2018, the Rezina Police Office started a criminal case against the journalist, accusing him of for hooliganism. On 29 June 2018, however, criminal proceedings were terminated, the prosecutor Ludmila Devderea from Rezina mentioning in her decision that no elements of crime, as envisaged in the Criminal Code, were found. Then, on 3 July 2018, contravention proceedings were initiated against Sofroni for ‘deliberate false police call’, which is covered by the Contravention Code.
Victor Sofroni appealed the ordinance issued by Ludmila Devderea, claiming the contravention proceedings against him to be unfounded and requesting the annulment of the ordinance. However, on 29 September 2018, Rezina district interim Chief Prosecutor Anatolie Malita rejected the journalist’s appeal. Risking to be fined and disagreeing with the prosecutors’ decision, Sofroni reached out to the court. He requested the annulment of the ordinance on the commencement of contravention proceedings of 3 July 2018, of clause 2 from the ordinance of 29 June 2018 and of the ordinance issued by prosecutor Maliuta on 24 September 2018.
The Orhei Court (Rezina office) declared null and void the ordinance issued by prosecutor Ludmila Devederea, who ruled the commencement of contravention proceedings against Victor Sofroni; the ordinance issued by prosecutor Anatolie Maliuta which ruled the rejection of Sofroni’s complaint against the ordinance issued by prosecutor Ludmila Devederea. This court resolution, together with the criminal case on the same case, were sent to the Rezina Prosecutor’s Office, requesting it to present repeatedly the grounds for dismissing the criminal case.
The Court Demands a Clear Position from the Prosecutor’s Office
De facto, the court of Orhei has attested that Victor Sofroni had no legal standing in the criminal prosecution given he was not heard as suspect or accused. The court’s decision mentions that the prosecutor has found that the actions of Sofroni meet the elements of a contravention but has not heard him as suspect or accused. ‘The appealed ordinance states that the actions of Victor Sofroni constitute elements of a contravention, while ruling termination of the criminal case on grounds that no offense has been found. Therefore, once the prosecutor has made no clear but confusing pronouncement regarding the legal basis, which served as a reason for the adoption of the contested solution, the court considers it necessary to cancel the ordinance of 29.06.2018’, the decision states.
Thus, the judge requested that the prosecutor made a clear and concise pronouncement regarding the legal basis for dismissing the criminal case – termination of the criminal prosecution, complete discharge of Victor Sofroni of criminal prosecution, or the fact that he has the status of neither suspect nor accused in the criminal case. The court therefore decided to fully revoke the appealed act of 29 June 2018. As regards the ordinance for the commencement of contravention proceedings (3 July 2018), the court found that it had no jurisdiction to rule on the lawfulness of the act as it is the prosecutor’s right to initiate such proceedings and the court is limited from the jurisdiction point of view. ‘At the same time, the contravention proceedings brought against Victor Sofroni are subject to further legal examination and the competent court is to make a pronouncement in this regard’, the court decision states.
‘One Cannot Rule Out that the Prosecutor’s Office Will Issue Another Ordinance...’
Vitalie Zama, the journalist’s lawyer, told Media-azi.md that on 26 February only judge Ivan Parii made a pronouncement. The magistrate canceled the prosecutors’ ordinances issued with regards to Sofroni’s complaints, but another judge is still to make a pronouncement on the contravention case. ‘Two ordinances were canceled and the materials were returned to the Prosecutor’s Office. This is what a court can do. At the same time, there is also the contravention case, reviewed by judge Veronica Cupcea from Orhei. The case review ended on 4 March and the decision on the contravention cause will be issued on 20 March’, mentioned Vitalie Zama. At the same time, the defender does not rule out that prosecutors will issue other ordinances on this case. ‘Until another ordinance is issued, these are canceled. One cannot, however, rule out that the Prosecutor’s Office will issue another ordinance’, Vitalie Zama added.
The Independent Journalism Center offers legal aid to the journalist on this case.
Previously, media NGOs qualified the reasons for the initiation of these proceedings and the legal classification of the alleged ‘contravention’ as absurd, given that Victor Sofroni merely requested that the police checked the information he received from unknown persons and so demanded that the case be closed.
