Romania’s High Court sentenced Mihail Vlasov, the former president of Romania’s Chamber of Commerce and Industry, to five years in prison for influence peddling.

The decision, which was made on June 18, is final, and the police already took Vlasov in custody, before he will be transferred to prison, reports local Hotnews.ro.

In March last year, Vlasov was caught red-handed in a restaurant in Bucharest, where he received EUR 200,000 from a businessman whom he promised help in an arbitration case. The businessman was supposed to pay Vlasov EUR 1 million and the EUR 200,000 were only the first tranche.

The prosecutors sent Vlasov’s case to court in April 2014 and the Bucharest Court of Appeal sentenced him to four years in prison, in December. He appealed the decision, but the High Court decided to add one year to his sentence.

Last Monday, the anti-corruption prosecutors indicted Vlasov in a new file, accusing him of bribing an MP to help him transfer Romania’s Trade Registry’s Office from the Justice Ministry to the Chamber of Commerce.

editor@romania-insider.com