Moldova seeks Swiss help investigating controversial tycoon
Between Romania and Ukraine, Moldova became an independent republic following the collapse of the Soviet Union in 1991.
Keystone
Moldova has sent the Swiss authorities a request for mutual legal assistance in connection to an investigation focused on tycoon Vlad Plahotniuc.
This content was published on
1 minute
SDA-Keystone-swissinfo.ch/ds
The Federal Office of Justice (FOJ) received the request on August 26, according to the weekly NZZ am Sonntag and Swiss news agency SDA-Keystone.
The request was forwarded to the public prosecutor’s office of Zurich, Switzerland’s leading financial hub.
The FOJ did not provide details about the request. However, according to the German-language newspaper, it cannot be ruled out that the Moldovan Public Prosecutor’s Office requests that Plahotniuc’s funds deposited in Zurich banks be frozen. The Moldovan tycoon also owns a villa in Collonge-Bellerive in the canton of Geneva.
The controversial oligarch, 53, was the most powerful and richest man in one of Europe’s poorest countries. On the run since June, Plahotniuc denies using political influence for personal gain.
The Moldovan Public Prosecutor’s Office has been investigating him since a change of government last February. More than $1 billion (CHF1 billion) disappeared from Moldova’s state-owned banks in 2014.
Popular Stories
More
Aging society
No house generation: the impossibility of buying property in Switzerland
In Switzerland more people are being referred to electrical therapies or psychedelic-assisted psychotherapy. Are there similar approaches where you live?
Significantly more civil aviation incidents logged in Switzerland
This content was published on
Switzerland saw around 20% more commercial and recreational aviation safety incidents reported to the Federal Office of Civil Aviation.
St Moritz most expensive Swiss address for luxury homes
This content was published on
St Moritz is the most expensive Swiss municipality for luxury real estate, with square metre costs starting at around CHF43,000.
Geneva university Palestinian demonstration ongoing
This content was published on
University of Geneva continues to prohibit access to areas occupied by members of the Student Coordination for Palestine group.
This content was published on
United States companies expanded their operations in Switzerland at a much higher rate than European counterparts last year.
This content was published on
Switzerland approves five electricity reserve plants powered by CO₂ neutral fuel, with a total capacity of 583 megawatts.
If you want to start a conversation about a topic raised in this article or want to report factual errors, email us at english@swissinfo.ch.
Read more
More
Swiss diplomats placed request for tobacco firm in Moldova
This content was published on
Swiss officials lodged a request on behalf of Philip Morris in Moldova, where politicians were debating a new tobacco law.
Campaign funding still a taboo topic in Switzerland
This content was published on
swissinfo.ch sheds light on the tradition of Swiss secrecy on funding of political parties and candidates during elections.
Guinea mining corruption affair to go to trial in Geneva
This content was published on
Israeli billionaire Beny Steinmetz is to stand trial along with two associates for the alleged payment of bribes in Guinea between 2005 and 2010.
You can find an overview of ongoing debates with our journalists here . Please join us!
If you want to start a conversation about a topic raised in this article or want to report factual errors, email us at english@swissinfo.ch.