Former Moldovan MP Marina Tauber sentenced, placed on Interpol wanted list
Former Moldovan MP Marina Tauber, who was sentenced to seven-and-a-half years in prison, has been placed on an international wanted list.
The case file was sent to the International Criminal Police Organization (Interpol) on Tuesday, October 7, Diana Fetco, head of communications for the General Police Inspectorate (IGP), told Teleradio-Moldova.
Ms Tauber was sentenced on 30 September to seven-and-a-half years in a semi-open prison for women over the illegal financing of the former pro-Russian Șor Party, which was declared unconstitutional in June 2023. The court also ordered the confiscation of more than 206 million lei from her in favour of the state.
The sentence will be served from the moment of her arrest, according to the Chișinău Court, Buiucani branch. Marina Tauber has not been in the Republic of Moldova (R. Moldova) since January 2025.
In July 2025, she was spotted in Moscow at the congress of the "Victorie" political bloc, launched by Ilan Șor, and had previously attended an economic forum in Saint Petersburg.
Marina Tauber gets seven-and-a-half years: Over 206 million lei confiscated
Ms Tauber’s reaction: "A political case, blatantly fabricated"
The court also banned Ms Tauber from holding public office and from carrying out activities related to accounting and financial organisation within political parties for five years.
Ms Tauber described the case as "political and blatantly fabricated," stating that there was no evidence to prove her guilt or that of her colleagues.
According to the indictment, between January 2022 and May 2023, Ms Tauber allegedly controlled cash flows originating from the Russian Federation. These were transported to the Republic of Moldova by "couriers" linked to the Șor network.
The sums, estimated at 195 million lei, were allegedly used for unofficially paying party members and for organising anti-government protests.
Of this amount, approximately 8.5 million lei were secured by criminal investigation bodies, and a further 9 million lei were discovered and seized during searches.
Additionally, Ms Tauber is accused of falsifying financial reports when she ran for the mayoralty of Bălți municipality. Prosecutors say she received around 9.7 million lei from the "Șor group," but reported only 750,000 lei in documents, fictitiously claiming the funds came from 104 people who had made no donations.
Four counts of indictment
Following Ilan Șor’s sentencing to 15 years in prison in absentia, his former colleague, Ms Tauber, was also accused of interfering with the course of justice. This followed her organisation of protests at the Chișinău Court of Appeal, where she demanded the resignation of judges and prosecutors she called "corrupt." She attempted to intimidate them using a megaphone and threatened to block the session by mobilising 3,000 supporters.
On the charge of interfering with the course of justice, the court discontinued proceedings, classifying the act as a minor offense (contravention). All these cases were consolidated.
The "Șor" Political Party was also found guilty on two counts: falsifying financial reports and accepting illegal financing from an organised criminal group. However, the criminal process against the party was terminated following its dissolution by the decision of the Constitutional Court.
The sentence is not final and can be appealed at the Centru Court of Appeal.
Translation by Iurie Tataru
