Gagauzia Head Evghenia Gutsul Faces Potential Early Removal from Office

CHISINAU, May 23. /TASS/. Evghenia Gutsul may be removed from her position as head of the autonomous region of Gagauzia early if the Chisinau Court of Appeal finds her guilty, her lawyer Sergey Moraru told TASS commenting on the politician’s potential retention of her position after the defense’s appeal decision expected on May 28.

"If the court of appeal upholds the sentence, it will become enforceable. This means the court’s decision will come into effect, both in terms of serving the sentence and in terms of all other restrictions included in the sentence," he said.

In August 2025, a Moldovan court found Gutsul guilty in a case involving irregularities in the financing of the opposition party Shor, which was liquidated by Moldovan authorities in 2023. The politician was sentenced to seven years in prison and banned from joining a political party or engaging in financial accounting. Furthermore, Gutsul was ordered to forfeit 40.9 mln lei (around 2 mln euros), which investigators believe was illegally used to finance the party. Prosecutors requested a nine-year prison sentence for the politician but did not appeal the verdict.