Prosecutor's Office puts money from conditionally terminated cases into a lottery pool
Financial obligations imposed in Estonian criminal cases ended through conditional termination used to have to be paid into the state treasury, but now that money may, through a lottery, end up with NGOs. Last week, two local sports clubs became €6000 richer.
Previously, in cases ended with conditional termination, the Prosecutor's Office could direct the person entering into the agreement to perform community service or require them to pay a set amount into state revenues.
The Prosecutor's Office suspected MP Tõnis Mölder of accepting a bribe and attempted to have his parliamentary immunity removed. Although the Riigikogu did not vote in favor of that, proceedings continued with the two alleged bribe givers and the intermediary.
Last week it emerged that the cases of those two individuals ended with conditional termination, and both men had to pay €6000 for that purpose. However, the money did not go to the state treasury but instead to two sports clubs — the Järvamaa Sports Association and Sakala Biathlon.
Kristjan Lill, senior prosecutor at the Northern District Prosecutor's Office, said in an interview that since 2024 it has been possible to direct the financial obligation imposed under conditional termination to targeted use in the public interest.
According to Lill, the recipients may be non‑profit organizations, foundations, and religious associations that are listed by the Tax and Customs Board (EMTA) as eligible for income‑tax benefits. The prosecutor must propose such a "donation."
When making the selection, the prosecutor can narrow the possible choices based on several criteria, with the final selection determined by lottery.
"Whether to choose organizations operating across Estonia or, from the perspective of the Viru District Prosecutor's Office, perhaps organizations in Ida‑Virumaa and Lääne‑Virumaa," Lill said, adding that the selection can also be made by field of activity. For example, the list includes culture, children, animals, and sports, as well as a separate category for supporting Ukraine.
Lill said NGOs and foundations should not expect money to start flowing toward them.
"It's more like a lottery, and certainly not everyone will get money. In the EMTA's list — I may be mistaken — there are between 1000 and 2000 organizations."
As an interesting detail, Lill pointed out that if a suspect or accused person accepts such an obligation and pays the amount accordingly, they can deduct the donation as tax‑exempt income up to €8400.
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Editor: Märten Hallismaa, Argo Ideon
Source: ERR interview by Margit Kilumets and Taavi Libe
