BUDAPEST, Hungary — Hungarian prosecutors and investigators from the country’s tax authority descended on offices housing data servers belonging to former Prime Minister Viktor Orbán’s Fidesz party on Tuesday, as part of a criminal investigation into suspected embezzlement and related offenses, according to a spokesperson for the prosecutor’s office who spoke with The Associated Press.
Marianna Bodó, a spokesperson for the Bács-Kiskun County chief prosecutor’s office, confirmed via email that the operation was tied to an investigation into the alleged misappropriation of grant funds through Hungary’s National Cultural Fund during the time Orbán’s government held power. That county is located south of the capital, Budapest.
Six current and former officials have been formally charged in connection with the suspected misuse of approximately 17 billion forints — the equivalent of around $53.5 million. All six have denied any wrongdoing.
Authorities allege the officials funneled the money in a non-transparent way to artists and performers with ties to Fidesz. Some of those individuals reportedly campaigned actively on behalf of the party ahead of April’s national election.
Bodó noted that a regional criminal unit of the National Tax and Customs Administration took part in the Tuesday raid, but said no additional details could be released, citing the ongoing nature of the investigation.
Fidesz responded with a statement posted to Facebook, claiming the raid was carried out without any advance warning and was intended to seize the party’s entire communications infrastructure and database systems. The party declared: “There has been no precedent for this in Hungary since the end of Communism in 1990!”
Orbán and Fidesz held power in Hungary for 16 years before suffering a decisive defeat in April’s elections. Throughout their time in government, the party faced repeated accusations of unchecked corruption, institutional capture, and the erosion of democratic norms and the rule of law.
Pro-European Prime Minister Péter Magyar, who leads the now-governing Tisza party, took office in May and has moved to dismantle what he describes as Orbán’s “mafia” — removing a number of political appointees, including the president, and replacing heads of institutions seen as having enabled Orbán’s style of governance.
Since losing the election, Fidesz has characterized Magyar and Tisza’s actions as “tyranny.” Tisza, for its part, maintains it is simply carrying out the mandate given to it by voters and fulfilling its campaign commitments.
Magyar posted on Facebook Tuesday saying he was waiting to receive more information about the raid directly from prosecutors.
