EU nation detains former presidential frontrunner

The Romanian fraud case against Calin Georgescu was first revealed just before his 2024 victory was annulled in an unprecedented move Romanian right-wing politician Calin Georgescu, who won the first round of the country’s 2024 presidential election before the result was controversially annulled, has been detained in connection with an alleged €1 million fraud scheme.

Georgescu’s surprise win on an anti-NATO platform was met with accusations from Brussels and Bucharest of fake online campaigning.

He was disqualified from running when a new vote was held, despite revelations that the suspected digital campaign in question was run by a party opposing him.

Romania’s Directorate for the Investigation of Organized Crime and Terrorism (DIICOT) said on Monday that it had detained a suspect and searched five properties linked to the case, with local media identifying Georgescu as the person of interest.

His key ally George Simion described the latest case as a warning that “any of us can be next.” Read more Romania’s stolen elections were only the start: Inside the EU’s war on democracy The investigation into the politician’s alleged involvement in fraud dating back to 2021 was first reported by Digi24 in December 2024.

The alleged victim had filed a criminal complaint earlier that year, the outlet said.

The media report came days before Romania’s Constitutional Court annulled the presidential election, sparking mass protests.

Simion, the leader of the right-wing Alliance for the Union of Romanians (AUR) who was also a candidate in the 2024 election and supported protests against their annulment, denounced Georgescu’s latest detention.

“Any of us can be next.

Stop the abuse!” he wrote on Facebook.

“Romania is a dictatorship!!!!” The fraud investigation is one of several cases opened against Georgescu, who has claimed to be a victim of political persecution.

He was previously accused of campaign-financing violations and plotting against the constitutional order, which disqualified him for the election rerun in 2025.

George Simion (R) and Calin Georgescu (L) talk on the day of the Romanian presidential election re-run, Mogosoaia, on May 18, 2025. © Andrei Pungovschi/Getty Images The administration of US President Donald Trump cited the annulment of the Romanian debacle when it accused Brussels of overseeing an erosion of democratic values in Europe.

The EU leadership said Bucharest is free in taking measures against “foreign interference.” The bloc’s general policy is to force censorship on social media platforms in response to alleged meddling.