Russia Transferred $40 Million to Moldova for Voter Bribery, Police Report Claims

Almost $40 million was transferred from Russia to Moldova to bribe voters during the presidential elections, stated Viorel Cernăuţeanu, head of the General Inspectorate of Police, as reported by NewsMaker.

Cernăuţeanu noted that according to investigation materials, over $24 million was transferred from Russia to Moldova in October alone, just ahead of the elections and referendum, using the "Promsvyazbank" app.

The police indicated that the scheme for bribing voters through "Promsvyazbank" began in late spring, but the number of transfers increased in the fall, before the elections and referendum.

Bots in Telegram assisted people in setting up the "Promsvyazbank" app. In October, the police documented and shut down 97 such bots. However, according to the police, 138,000 numbers from Moldova were still registered in the system.

Cernăuţeanu stated that while the amount transferred in September was $15 million, it has now reached $39 million.

"It is important for all our citizens to understand that they are being drawn into an illegal scheme," emphasized Cernăuţeanu.

As of now, law enforcement has documented over 520 individuals involved in the voter bribing scheme, who face up to three years in prison or fines.

On October 20, Moldova held presidential elections and a referendum on joining the European Union. During this time, the Moldovan Ministry of Foreign Affairs accused Russia of creating artificial queues at polling stations, while Deputy Prime Minister Kristina Gerasimova claimed Moscow was conducting a large-scale campaign to destabilize the country, alleging that Russia spent around 100 million euros to disrupt the elections and referendum.