Former Romanian presidential candidate Călin Georgescu and businessman Ionel Rusen have been sent to trial in a case involving alleged fraud totaling €1,102,500. The two are charged with forming an organized criminal group and aggravated fraud committed continuously.
The indictment was filed by prosecutors from the Directorate for the Investigation of Organized Crime and Terrorism (DIICOT). The case has been sent to the Ilfov Tribunal. Georgescu and Rusen are currently in pre-trial detention, and the prosecution has requested that the measure be maintained.
€6 million loan promised
According to the indictment, the group operated from September 2021 to October 2023, mainly in Romania, as well as in the United Kingdom. A businessman was promised financial assistance of €6 million to develop a commercial venture.
Prosecutors allege that Georgescu directed the businessman to Rusen, who put him in contact with an Italian national. The two presented themselves as senior officials at a foreign financial institution through which the loan could allegedly be granted.
According to the indictment, financial guarantees were demanded in order to access the funding. In December 2021, €1 million and €2,500 were transferred to an account at a Swiss bank. The prosecution states that the account belonged to a financial entity headquartered in Dominica.
The businessman was later told that the loan could be increased to €15 million in exchange for an additional guarantee. A further €100,000 was transferred in January 2022. The promised loan was never granted, and the money was not returned, DIICOT alleges.
Investigation continues in a separate case file
According to the indictment, Georgescu assumed the leadership role and assigned tasks to the other participants. Meetings with the businessman took place in Bucharest, Câmpulung Muscel and London.
The Italian national, who has the status of a suspect, will be investigated in a separate case file. DIICOT is continuing its checks into the possible involvement of other individuals, as well as suspicions of forging private documents.
The prosecution has also requested that the precautionary measures imposed on property and bank accounts remain in force. Sending the case to trial marks the end of the pre-trial investigation phase, but does not constitute proof of guilt. Georgescu and Rusen are presumed innocent until a final verdict is issued.
Sources: hotnews.ro, tvrinfo.ro, capital.ro