Prosecutors appeal acquittal of Kalle Laanet to Supreme Court
The Prosecutor's Office is contesting the decision of the Circuit Court, which earlier found Reform Party MP Kalle Laanet guilty of fraud over expense reimbursements but subsequently acquitted him.
Prosecutors appeal acquittal of Kalle Laanet to Supreme Court
The Prosecutor's Office has filed a cassation appeal with the Supreme Court to overturn a May decision by Tallinn Circuit Court that cleared Kalle Laanet, a Reform Party member of parliament and former justice minister, of charges, according to Õhtuleht.
By an earlier decision of Harju District Court, Laanet was found guilty of fraud in connection with claiming reimbursement for rental costs of a Tallinn flat. The flat's ultimate owner turned out to be his stepson, which raised the question of whether Laanet intentionally submitted misleading information to the state. Some of the expense reimbursements fell during a period when he was a member of the government.
According to prosecutor Olgerd Petersell, the Harju District Court's guilty verdict was well justified. "For example, the Circuit Court found that a government official's spouse's child is a related party under the anti-corruption law and the wording of the corresponding provision is sufficiently clear and comprehensible. The court also found that the failure to declare a related person on the submitted forms constituted fraud and that Kalle Laanet thereby caused financial harm to the state," Petersell told Õhtuleht.
However, the Prosecutor's Office disagrees with the Circuit Court's conclusion that Laanet did not know about the specific legal provision whose implementation he, as a member of parliament and later as justice minister, supervised. "In our assessment, the circumstances prove beyond doubt that Laanet knew the content of this provision," Petersell added.
If the Supreme Court does not change the Circuit Court's decision, the Prosecutor's Office requests that the case be sent back to the Circuit Court for a new hearing.
According to the Harju District Court's initial decision, Laanet, who has previously served as defence minister, was to serve a conditionally suspended prison sentence of one year and four months. During 2022–2023, he submitted reimbursement requests for renting the flat from a company owned by his stepson. The officials were unaware of this relationship when processing the requests. Laanet received approximately 13,000 euros in housing expense reimbursement from the Ministry of Justice and the Office of the Riigikogu.
The Circuit Court agreed that the stepson qualifies as a related party under the anti-corruption law, but found that Laanet's receipt of reimbursement did not depend on the landlord's related status. The court decided that although Laanet did not understand the law correctly, the Prosecutor's Office did not prove his intentional fraud, and therefore the elements of fraud were not satisfied.
The Circuit Court also ordered the state to pay Laanet over 36,500 euros to cover court costs.
Laanet denied the allegations and claimed that the criminal proceedings had been initiated as retaliation for his actions as justice minister.
Source: ERR, https://news.err.ee/1610073484/prosecutors-appeal-justice-minister-expenses-acquittal-to-supreme-court
Source: ERR News