Korb, who according to fellow Center Party member Jaanus Karilaid has resigned as the party’s secretary general, was the only one not detained. Whether the release of the four persons who were detained will be sought will become clear once initial proceedings have been concluded, Pern said.
Hillar Teder and Kersti Kracht could be looking at prison sentences of up to ten years as theirs are crimes in the first degree. Mihhail Korb is suspected of a crime in the second degree.
The suspicion against the Center Party concerns a crime committed during probation. This means that the party could incur a fine to which a previous pecuniary punishment could be added if the party is found guilty. Harju County Court in September of 2018 approved a deal between the prosecution and the Center Party that saw the party pay a fine of €25,000 for disguised financing with a conditional fine of €250,000 and a probationary period of 18 months added. This means that another claim worth a quarter of a million euros is hanging over the party.
Member of the board of the Center Party, MEP Yana Toom said she only knows what she has read from the press. “It does not feel good. Suspicions are suspicions and you cannot really protect yourself from them,” Toom said.
Postimees did not manage to contact Kersti Kracht, Hillar Teder – who can be legally detained for a period of 48 hours following suspicions – Mihhail Korb or other leading Centrists, including PM Jüri Ratas and Mayor of Tallinn Mihhail Korb, for comment.