Orban denies ordering seizure of Ukrainian vehicles carrying $82 million in cash and gold
Hungary’s former prime minister denies directing the seizure as prosecutors investigate allegations of unlawful detention and mistreatment of seven Ukrainians.
Budapest, Hungary. Hungary’s former prime minister, Viktor Orban, has rejected allegations that he ordered authorities to seize two Ukrainian cash-transport vehicles carrying cash and gold worth $82 million. He described the accusations as politically motivated.
Orban responds to governing party
Politicians in the governing Tisza party had pressed Orban to clarify whether he was involved, although he has not been questioned by investigators. In a statement last week, Defence Minister Romulusz Ruszin-Szendi challenged him to address the Hungarian public and state clearly whether he had ordered the convoy to be stopped.
Speaking to Hir TV on Monday, Orban described the movement of the Ukrainian assets as the biggest corruption case in Europe.
“I did not have to make specific decisions and order measures because, fortunately, the Hungarian authorities did their job of their own accord. But I would have done so anyway if they had not done it themselves,” Orban told the channel.
Prosecutors examine authorities’ handling of the case
Hungarian authorities briefly detained seven Ukrainians accompanying the assets in March on suspicion of money laundering. Prosecutors subsequently opened an investigation into how the case was handled, including allegations that the Ukrainian nationals had been unlawfully detained and mistreated.
In June, prosecutors identified Janos Hajdu as a suspect. Hajdu previously led Hungary’s counter-terrorism forces and is now the security chief for Orban’s Fidesz party.
Bank says transport was routine
Ukraine’s Oschadbank said its employees were moving the money and gold to Ukraine from Austria as part of a routine operation. According to the bank, it had conducted such transfers every week since Russia launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022.
The case heightened tensions between Hungary and Ukraine ahead of the April election. That vote brought an end to the 16-year premiership of Orban, an ally of Russia.
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