Romanian deputy mayor accused of defrauding hundreds of Americans with over a million dollars, extradited to the US

Dorin Racu, the deputy mayor of Vărădia in Caraş-Severin county, was taken over by the American authorities on Friday, being extradited after he had been put on an APB, according to Radio Reșita.

The man – who for 9 years managed to escape from justice in the USA – is accused of having defrauded hundreds of people in Louisiana and other American states of more than a million dollars.

On Friday morning, the man was handed over to the US authorities, at Henri Coandă Airport, to be taken to the state of Louisiana and tried for the acts he allegedly committed, according to Radio Reșita.

Dorin Racu had been caught by Interpol on February 3, 2023, being placed under international prosecution by the US Department of Justice, the Louisiana Attorney General’s Office. The American authorities arrested Dorin Racu (AKA: Dorin Munteanu) in 2014, but after the preventive release he allegedly fled to Romania. According to the Louisiana Attorney General’s Office, Dorin Racu was arrested by the Department of Homeland Security on August 18, 2014 for online and telephone fraud.

Dorin Racu was arrested after, together with other people, he allegedly defrauded hundreds of people from Louisiana and other states out of over a million dollars. The scheme was carried out on sites such as Craigslist and Ebay. “Dorin Racu is an illegal alien with ties to southeast Louisiana, California and New York. Dorin Racu’s criminal history is: identity theft, possession of stolen property, forgery, money laundering and resisting an officer,” the Louisiana Attorney General’s Office said.

Dorin Racu is the deputy mayor of Vărădia commune since 2020. Cosmin Bolosin, the deputy mayor’s lawyer, told ObserverNews, in February, at the time when Racu was caught by Interpol: “My client was surprised when he was detained because he did not remember what had happened for so many years . He wanted to be transferred as soon as possible to the United States of America to prove his innocence”.