Former Tourism Minister, Elena Udrea, claims she assumed responsibility when leaving Romania to reach Costa Rica, where she requested the refugee status, blaming the abuses in the home country.
“I did not flee. I requested this status of refugee and protection, a must considering what is happening in Romania and my case during the past three years. I decided to leave when I realised there’s no chance for a fair trial. I realised there’s no chance for a fair trial at the appeal, as it was not the case in the first court. I came to a country with strong and transparent legal framework, which protects those abused by their home country,” Udrea told Antena 3 TV private broadcaster by video call Thursday evening.
Udrea claims she does not want to live in another country, wants to raise her child in Romania and had she been certain a fair trial takes place, she would return.
George Maior wanted to become PM
Elena Udrea argues former Romanian Intelligence Service (SRI) Director, George Maior (2006-2015), currently Ambassador to the US, was dissatisfied when former President Traian Basescu appointed Razvan Ungureanu as prime Minister. He also wanted to run for president.
“Maior wanted to run for president. Had he been PMP candidate, I would have supported him. Maior was dissatisfied when Traian Basescu appointed Mihai Razvan Ungureanu as Prime Minister. Basescu said it’s not right that the SRI head becomes PM. He chose Ungureanu because the Romanian Foreign Intelligence Service (SIE) does not deal with domestic information. Maior was upset, because he wanted to become Premier, and when it came to candidacies for president, he wanted to run,” Udrea said.
Elena Udrea claims Florian Coldea (former SRI deputy chief) supported certain magistrates to be appointed with the Supreme Court, such as Livia Stanciu and Ionut Matei. She also claimed that SRI got involved in getting the maximum sentence for businessman Dan Voiculescu (owner of Intact group).
Referring to the protocols between SRI and various institutions, Udrea argues the intention was to take over the power in Romania.
“The brain was Florian Coldea, the idea maybe came after discussions with the American partners, I don’t know,” the former minister said.
Udrea added Traian Basescu made the wrong decision when appointing Florian Coldea and Laura Codruta Kovesi.
On March 29, 2017, Elena Udrea was sentenced to six years imprisonment with execution in the ‘Bute Gala’ file for bribery and abuse of office.
Former Tourism Minister Elena Udrea, investigated in Romania for corruption, currently in Costa Rica, announced in late March she has miscarried one of her twins. Udrea announced in mid-February she was pregnant with twins.
Her lawyer Alexandru Chiciu filed documents in court certifying she has miscarried one of the twins and that she is compelled to keep to her bed to avoid any risk of miscarrying the other baby.
Elena Udrea, former Development and Tourism Minister in the Emil Boc cabinet, is prosecuted in several files, and is in Costa Rica, living in the same neighbourhood with the former National Directorate for Combating Organised Crime and Terrorism (DIICOT) head, Alina Bica, also prosecuted in some corruption files, who left Romania for Costa Rica at the end of last year.