August 23, 2012

PRESS RELEASE

The Public Information and Press Relations Bureau within the Prosecutor’s Office attached to the High Court of Cassation and Justice is authorized to bring to public knowledge the following:

On August 22, 2012, pursuant to the provisions of Article 209 para 4¹ of the Criminal Procedure Code, the Prosecutor General of the Prosecutor’s Office attached to the High Court of Cassation and Justice ordered that the Criminal Investigation and Criminalistics Section within the Prosecutor’s Office attached to the High Court of Cassation and Justice take over from several prosecutor’s offices certain criminal cases, following indications that the defendant VLAD NICOLAE is suspected of having committed several violent acts.

 Thus, the Prosecutor General of the Prosecutor’s Office attached to the High Court of Cassation and Justice ordered that the criminal case concerning the acts of rape and robbery committed on two female victims, S.M. and A.A., be taken over from the Bucharest District 1 Local Court.

According to the information gathered in this case, violent acts were committed on the victims S.M. and A.A., they were forced to have sexual intercourse, then robbed of several personal items. In both cases, an unidentified person broke into the victims’ homes during the night. In the case of S.M., the unidentified person broke into the victim’s home on February 25, 2012 at 9:30 PM, while in the case of A.A., the unidentified person broke into her home on March 1, 2012 at 8:30 PM.

In both cases, the prosecutors from the Prosecutor’s Office attached to the Bucharest District 1 Local Court instituted criminal proceedings in rem and then connected the two cases.

Other two criminal cases that were on the docket at the Prosecutor’s Office attached to the Buftea Local Court were taken over pursuant to Article 209 para 4¹ of the Criminal Procedure Code, concerning the break-in and robbery against the female victim M.M., and the break-in, rape, robbery, and deprivation of liberty against the female victim N.L.

According to the information gathered, in these cases too an unidentified person broke into the victims’ homes: On April 29, 2012 at 3:00 into the victim M.M.’s home, submitting her to violent acts and robbing her of her mobile phone; On March 7, 2011 into the victim’s N.L., submitting her to violent acts, forcing her to have sexual intercourse with him and robbing her of several items.

Also pursuant to the provisions of Article 209 para 4¹ of the Criminal Procedure Code, a case on the docket of the Prosecutor’s Office attached to the Ilfov Tribunal investigating the crimes of homicide and rape against the victim S.T. was also taken over.

According to the information gathered in the case, on August 6, 2012, the victim S.T. was found dead in her home, with signs of sexual aggression. The autopsy revealed that the death was caused by mechanical asphyxia by cervical thoracic compression.

The cases were taken over because of their complexity determined by the specific crimes committed, the need to produce evidence with maximum celerity, and the fact that the workload in those prosecutor’s offices was already very high.

It should be pointed out that, immediately after having taken over the cases, the prosecutors from the Criminal Investigation and Criminalistics Section ordered DNA tests that are currently being performed and the hearing of several persons, and will produce all the required evidence with maximum celerity. The evidence gathered following the taking over of the cases showed strong indications that the acts had been committed by the defendant Vlad Nicolae.

We are reminding that prosecutors have submitted a request for the pretrial arrest of the defendant VLAD NICOLAE for 29 days, starting August 19, 2012, in the case investigating the commission of a first degree murder against a victim (a Japanese citizen) on August 15, 2012.  The magistrates of the Bucharest Tribunal have granted the request and ordered that the defendant VLAD NICOLAE be arrested for 29 days. The defendant VLAD NICOLAE has filed appeal against the decision of pretrial arrest. The term for this appeal is August 24, 2012, at the Bucharest Appellate Court.

Pursuant to the provisions of Article 3 point 12 of the Internal Regulations of Prosecutor’s Offices (of February 21, 2007), the Prosecutor General of the Prosecutor’s Office attached to the High Court of Cassation and Justice has ordered that specially designated prosecutors check whether the previously mentioned prosecutor’s offices that had initially handled the cases had taken the proper steps and ensured the adequate celerity in the investigations carried out before the cases were taken over from them.

We will keep the public informed on the course of the investigations.

The result of the verifications carried out will also be brought to public notice.