Tallinn Circuit Court upholds Kert Kingo sentence
The second-tier Tallinn Circuit Court concurred with a Harju County Court decision which found EKRE MP Kert Kingo and he co-defendant Martin Traat guilty of fraud, clarifying the legal qualification of the offenses and confirming key facts in the case.
The circuit court however annulled the county court's decision regarding the classification of the offense. The circuit court found that the fraud and aiding thereof attributed to the defendants were not repeated offenses but, in legal terms, constituted a single continuing act.
In its other aspects, the county court's decision remained unchanged, including with regard to the sentences.
The circuit court agreed that the conditional sentence of one year and nine months imposed on Kert Kingo, and the six-month conditional sentence imposed on Martin Traat, were both justified.
In both cases, the sentences will not be enforced if the defendants do not commit any new crime during their probation periods.
The circuit court also concurred with the county court's assessment that the search of the law firm which took place in the course of the investigation was conducted in a legal manner, and that the evidence obtained during the search is admissible in court.
The court also found that the investigator has the right to interpret the terms "work of a member of the Riigikogu" and "expenses related to the work of a member of the Riigikogu" within the framework of the law.
During the court proceedings, it was established that the expenses submitted by Kert Kingo were not related to her work at the Riigikogu but instead concerned legal fees for third parties in a civil case unrelated to her reputation or his duties as an MP.
The court concluded that both Kingo and Traat comprehended that the submitted legal expenses were not related to the work of the Riigikogu.
No mistake in legal interpretation was found, since precedent and legal opinion have confirmed that submitting false data in expense claims is a prohibited act and is punishable. The circuit court also found that Kingo's error was not unavoidable.
The circuit court partly satisfied the defense's requests for reimbursement of appeal costs and fees.
To that end, the state was ordered to reimburse Kert Kingo for her appeal costs to the sum of €1,360.30, while Martin Traat's legal costs of €735 were awarded to law firm Eipre & Partnerid.
The circuit court's decision has not yet entered into force, and it can be appealed at the Supreme Court within 30 days of the date of the ruling.
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Editor: Marko Tooming, Andrew Whyte
