Another media tycoon is eyed for corruption. The Directorate for Investigating Organised Crime and Terrorism (DIICOT) on Wednesday morning conducted four searches at the place of businessman Cristian Burci and at the headquarters of the newspaper he controls, Adevarul Holding. He also owns Prima TV channel.
Burci was taken to the organized crime body’s HQs in Olt for hearings.
The media mogul is suspected of plundering the former wagon factory ROMVAG in Caracal, Olt county.
DIICOT sources reveal that Cristian Burci bought ROMVAG from the Romanian state and, starting 2006, he set up an organized criminal group, endorsed by the former manager of the plant, Ion Dinoiu, currently running for the Caracal City Hall on behalf of UNPR, but also by other eight people. Among them, there would be also Denisa Turcu, “Adevarul” daily’s special administrator.
They would have prejudiced ROMVAG Caracal and the state budget by tax evasion, money laundering, embezzlement, abuse of office, with the prejudice mounting to over EUR 7 M and RON 4 M.
Prosecutors say that the members of the group used to hide the taxable source and to register some expenses which were not based on real operations. Therefore, the members of the group would have recycled various amounts of money originating from law-breaking.