"This is Parvel Pruunsild's defense argument, and in my view, it's complete nonsense. In reality, this criminal case was launched based on clear evidence submitted to the Prosecutor's Office and that evidence was gathered in the course of an entirely different investigation," Chief State Prosecutor Taavi Pern said on ETV's "Terevisioon" on Wednesday morning.

Isamaa is suspected to have received two prohibited donations totaling approximately €330,000.

Pern explained that prosecutors can only initiate proceedings when information suggests a possible crime and, in such cases, the law obligates them to open a criminal investigation.

"This evidence wasn't collected because Lavly Perling or anyone else submitted a criminal complaint or handed it to us directly. No — these were uncovered during a criminal investigation and have since been evaluated. On that basis, we initiated proceedings independently, without any external pressure or contact with anyone."

According to Pern, the allegations relate to a time when competing views were being expressed within the Isamaa party. Because of this, prosecutors have also questioned members of the Parempoolsed party as witnesses. Parempoolsed leader Lavly Perling has confirmed to ERR that she gave testimony as a witness.

Pern noted that the Political Parties Act clearly defines how donations to political parties may and may not be made.

"The scheme itself is actually very simple: only private individuals are allowed to donate money to political parties. The donation must be made to the party's official bank account and it must be declared. Broadly speaking, anything outside of this framework may constitute a prohibited donation. The law also states explicitly that donations cannot be made through intermediaries."

The Political Parties Act also prohibits donations from legal entities and according to Pern, that is the central issue in the current case: a legal entity is suspected of donating to Isamaa.

"According to our suspicion, the donation was not made directly to the party's account. Instead, the party benefited through intermediaries," Pern said.

He also responded to recent criticism of the Political Parties Act, saying he sees no flaws in the regulation. In his view, the law outlines a simple and clear framework for making donations to political parties.

"The law states plainly: donations may be made by private individuals and only to a party's official account."

Asked why prosecutors came forward with the allegations at this particular time and whether they had waited for the local elections to pass, Pern denied any connection.

"No, we did not wait for the elections to be over. Already in September, I explained publicly what the next steps in the investigation would be. I said then that we had gathered a significant amount of evidence, but we still needed to make additional inquiries and interview witnesses. Once we had information to analyze, we would bring charges," Pern recalled.

In a recent interview with ERR, businessman, Isamaa member and major donor Parvel Pruunsild suggested that the case constitutes vengeance on the part of Parempoolsed leader, former Prosecutor General Lavly Perling and accused the Prosecutor's Office of acting on Perling's instructions. Perling has categorically denied the allegations.

The case concerns a time period when the then-Isamaa splinter group Parempoolsed was vying for control of the party against the more conservative wing of then-chair Helir-Valdor Seeder. Parempoolsed became a political party shortly after Perling and other members were evicted from Isamaa.

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