CHISINAU. Oct 19 (Interfax) - The defense team of the former Moldovan prime minister, Vlad Filat, is set to appeal against the court order on his preliminary arrest, lawyer Igor Popa told reporters after the court hearing on Sunday.
A court in Chisinau's Buiucani Sector remanded Filat in custody for 30 days after a hearing that lasted more than seven hours.
"I am not in a position to comment on the court ruling. The lawyers will challenge this decision at the Appellate Chamber, and, if need be, at the European Court of Human Rights (ECHR) as well," the lawyer said.
A day earlier Filat wrote a statement against businessman Ilan Shor whose "confession" forms basis for the indictment, he said.
"Shor gave false evidence. Filat has pointed this out in his statement and attached supporting documentation," Popa said.
He also said that Shora's confession was published in the press on Friday.
"This is a breach of the procedure and leads to violation of the presumption of innocence and discredits Filat. We appealed to prosecutors and demand a criminal inquiry into this incident," the lawyer said.
When asked why the bail hearing took so long, Popa said the defense speech lasted for approximately three hours and the judges' deliberation took as much time.
By the time the court ended its hearing, there had still been several dozen members of Filat's Liberal Democratic Party outside its building. By that time most of his supporters had gone, as had dozens of Filat's opponents who also picketed the court building this morning.
Filat is charged with "large-scale passive corruption" and "taking advantage of influence with the taking of massive bribes." Under the Moldovan Criminal Code, Filat faces up to 15 years of imprisonment and a fine of up to 200,000 leus ($20,000) and being barred from public office or specific activity for ten to 15 years.
The former prime minister was detained on Thursday in the parliament building after the parliament voted for him to be stripped of his parliamentary immunity. The reason for the accusation was that Ilan Shora (the husband of pop singer Jasmine) turned himself in and said he had paid Filat some $250,000 in bribes since 2011.