Preventive arrest or judicial control for Bihor network accused of exploiting vulnerable persons
Six individuals linked to unauthorised social centres in the country's west await the superior court's verdict regarding deprivation of liberty.
Preventive arrest or judicial control for Bihor network accused of exploiting vulnerable persons
Judges at the Bucharest Court of Appeal will rule on Monday on a challenge filed by prosecutors against the judicial control measure imposed on six people suspected of forming a criminal group operating unauthorised care centres in Bihor County.
Among those under investigation are a man considered the head of the alleged network, his life partner, three members of their family, and a woman who handled the practical administration of activities at the respective locations. These individuals were initially detained by law enforcement, but the lower court decided at the beginning of July that they could be investigated whilst free, subject to certain obligations and restrictions.
The central unit combating organised crime disagreed with this decision and requested the measure be replaced with deprivation of liberty for one month. The hearing on this request was postponed last week.
According to criminal prosecution documents, the criminal activity is said to have begun approximately five years ago. The targeted individuals are alleged to have attracted to their centres people in difficulty — particularly elderly people, individuals with mental health problems and people without stable housing — whom they would have exploited to generate income. All of this is said to have taken place under the guise of an association claiming to carry out philanthropic activities, although it lacked the necessary legal documentation to provide social or health services.
The main suspect rejected the charges at his latest appearance before the magistrates. He maintained that for twenty years he had acted with the desire to help fellow human beings in distress, people whom nobody else wanted. He declared that he had attempted to provide them with shelter and care, stating that he feels innocent.
Defence lawyers challenged the very basis of the charges, arguing that the investigation failed to clarify who the alleged victims were and what exactly their conditions were. They also raised the point that public entities had appealed in the past for support from these centres.
Source: Digi24
Source: Digi24