Romanian prosecutors from the Directorate for Investigating Organised Crime and Terrorism (DIICOT) detained former presidential candidate Călin Georgescu on Monday morning. Officers stopped the politician in his car in Otopeni and took him to his home in Mogoșoaia, near Bucharest, where a search was carried out.
According to DIICOT, the investigation concerns the formation of an organised criminal group and aggravated fraud. Searches were conducted at five addresses in Bucharest, Mogoșoaia, Ciolpani and Buftea. Besides 64-year-old Georgescu, the case involves 47-year-old Romanian businessman Ionel Rusen and 56-year-old Italian national Massimiliano Arena.
Prosecutors say that in September 2021 the three suspects presented themselves as successful businessmen and executives of foreign companies. They persuaded entrepreneur Răzvan Leu that they could arrange a loan from a foreign financial institution, including a Swiss one. The promised loan was initially €6 million in exchange for a guarantee of more than €1 million. They later offered to raise the amount to €15 million for an additional €100,000. In total, the victim transferred to about 1.1 million. The promised financing never materialised.
Romanian media report that part of the money was allegedly sent to an account of an entity registered in the Commonwealth of Dominica at a Swiss bank. One million euros was supposedly intended for a precious-metals deal, while €100,000 was meant for the “group leader’s” election campaign. After the search, Georgescu was taken to DIICOT headquarters in Bucharest. His supporters gathered outside the building. Some reports said he had been held for 24 hours and that prosecutors may request pre-trial detention on Tuesday.
Georgescu unexpectedly won the first round of Romania’s presidential election in November 2024. The Constitutional Court annulled the result over alleged Russian interference in his favour. The rerun in May 2025 was won by pro-European candidate Nicușor Dan. Georgescu himself was barred from standing. He is already facing two other cases: one over alleged action against the constitutional order after the election was cancelled, and another over promoting fascist and Legionary ideology. He denies all the accusations.
The politician is known for harsh criticism of NATO, the European Union and Western support for Ukraine. Moscow has denied interfering in Romania’s election.
