Original Post

NICOSIA, Cyprus — Former Prime Minister Adrian Nastase of Romania shot and wounded himself on Wednesday, apparently in a suicide attempt, hours after the country’s Supreme Court ruled he must serve a two-year sentence for corruption.

 Mr. Nastase is the most senior Romanian politician to be jailed since the overthrow of Communism in 1989.

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BUCHAREST, Romania -- A former Romanian former prime minister who shot himself in the neck hours after being sentenced to prison successfully underwent surgery Thursday, bringing more high drama to a case that has sent shockwaves through this Eastern European nation.

Adrian Nastase was rushed to the hospital Wednesday after shooting himself in apparent reaction to the Supreme Court's decision that he must serve a two-year prison sentence on corruption charges. The ruling made him the most senior Romanian politician to be sentenced to prison since the 1989 end of communism.

One of the most prominent politicians of the past two decades, Nastase had appealed a March 30 court ruling that sentenced him to prison for illegally raising funds for a failed presidential campaign. The Supreme Court upheld the sentence on Wednesday.

The trial sent a signal to the European Union, which had urged Romania to crack down on endemic corruption, that the country was finally tackling high-level graft. The Eastern European nation's legal system has often been criticized for being under political influence.

Surgeon Serban Bradisteanu said doctors successfully performed surgery Thursday on Nastase's gunshot wounds, and he will remain in intensive care. The former prime minister's condition is complicated by diabetes and cardiac problems, Bradisteanu said.