Three Romanian Football Corruption Suspects Remain Under Arrest

Magistrates of the Pitesti Court of Appeal (S Romania) allowed Friday the appeal formulated by anticorruption prosecutors against the ruling passed Wednesday by the Arges Court to release Cristian Libertatu, retrying and rejecting the defendant’s request for release under judicial control, thus the defendant will remain in the custody of the Arges County Police.

Also Friday, the Pitesti Court of Appeal rejected as unfounded the appeals formulated by the lawyers of PIC hypermarket Liviu Facaleata and suspended Central Referee Commission president Gheorghe Constantin against the Arges Court ruling to reject their temporary release under judicial control.

Pitesti Court of Appeal judges issued a final and binding decision that Cristian Libertatu is to pay 100 lei (EUR1 = RON4.1762) in legal expenses, while Liviu Facaleata and Gheorghe Constantin are to pay RON200 de lei.

Wednesday, the former director of the Arges county Consumer Protection Office, Cristian Libertatu, placed under preventive arrest under charges of receiving bribe in the football refereeing corruption case, was brought before the Arges Court, which decided to release him on probation, but the decision may be appealed.

In the refereeing corruption trial, on April 14 anticorruption prosecutors arrested football club FC Arges financer Cornel Penescu, suspended Central Referee Committee president Gheorghe Constantin, PIC hypermarket general manager Liviu Facaleata, as well as the former director od the Arges County Consumer Protection Office, Cristian Libertatu. Cornel Penescu and Liviu Facaleata are charged with offering bribe, while Gheorghe Constantin and Cristian Libertatu are charged with taking bribe.

On May 11, the Arges Court decided to discontinue the arrest warrants, but anticorruption prosecutors appealed, and one day later the Pitesti Court of Appeal allowed the action, thus the defendants remained under arrest for at least 30 days.