DNA, DIICOT unhappy with CC decision to ban SRI from tapping

The Constitutional Court’s decision banning the Romanian Intelligence Service from tapping in criminal cases puzzled the National Anti-corruption Directorate (DNA) and the Directorate for Investigating Organised Crime and Terrorism (DIICOT), as they used to resort to SRI to do the wiretaps during their investigations.

The Constitutional Court’ s ruling is valid also for the ongoing cases, but will not affect the files that have been already solved.

DNA retorted that it would have to set up its own wire-tapping body that would need 130 detached police officers to operate the wiretaps and funds of over EUR 10m.

DIICOT claims it needs an even larger budget and more staff to investigate the cases and make their own tapping. More precisely, DIICOT needs EUR 25m to buy surveillance equipment and 200 police officers to deal with the tapping.

Romania’s Constitutional Court motivates its decision by saying that SRI is not a criminal investigation body and therefore cannot conduct tapping actions.

The Constitutional Court argues that there is no law regulation, except for the Criminal Procedure Code, that should specially stipulate the competence of a state body, except for the criminal prosecution institutions, to conduct technical surveillance.