Center Party escapes prosecution

TALLINN - The Estonian prosecutor’s office won’t investigate the claims by former Center Party member Tarmo Lausing about alleged dirty financing by the Center Party that took place in the middle of the 2000s, reports Delfi. State Prosecutor’s Office spokeswoman Katrin Lund said that it is not possible to start a criminal investigation of the case since the possible crime has expired by now.

Under the Punitive Code provision 81, the deadline for prosecution has passed.

Postimees Online and Eesti Ekspress weekly wrote on Oct. 3 that former Center Party youth organization head and party board member Tarmo Lausing, who quit the party last month, claims that he was repeatedly given money in the party for which he had to find “donors” for, and the money laundering network consisted of hundreds of people. Lausing said that he received 250,000 kroons (16,000 euros) of unknown origin from another party member, for which he had to find “donors,” i.e. people who would then “donate” it to the party. “I was given money during the period after the Youth Assembly chairman’s term of office. It has been done repeatedly,” he said. Lausing was the party’s Youth Assembly head in 2003-2005.