"Police arrested BKV's IT manager Zsolt Fuzik in Szeged late Wednesday in connection with the kickback scandal at Budapest public transport company (BKV).A European arrest warrant for Fuzik was issued soon after he fled Hungary in early December and subsequently failed to return from a ski trip in Austria.
Earlier on Wednesday police detained more new suspects in connection with the BKV scandal. Gyorgy Tothfalusi, former Free Democrat chairman of the BKV board, City Hall chief adviser Erno Mesterhazy, former PR department head Tibor Zelenak and one-time PR deputy Miklos Regoczi all face questioning.
Tothfalusi and another board member signed the employment termination contract of former CEO Attila Antal, which neither mentioned severance pay nor a notice period, the company announced earlier. Police mounted a house search at a building of the mayor's office on Wednesday.
Questioned on suspicion of misuse of funds were Eva Horvath, who was the spokeswoman to former deputy mayor Miklos Hagyo; her common-law husband Laszlo Matay; and Tothfalusi. During house searches detectives impounded BKV consultancy contracts and computers.
Budapest Police began a probe into BKV after the city council group of Fidesz and the Christian Democrats filed a report. Fidesz spokesman Peter Szijjarto said it is now undeniable that BKV functioned as a cash till for the Socialist Party and the Free Democrats.
The BKV kickbacks scandal broke in December, when BKV legal director Gyorgy Sziebert and his counterpart at Budapest Airport Krisztina Renyi-Vamos were arrested for allegedly funnelling contracts to law firms in exchange for cash.
Mesterhazy, an aide of Demszky’s since the mid-nineties, played a major role in Attila Retkes becoming leader of the Free Democrats and in cementing the election alliance between the liberals and the Democratic Forum in Budapest, according to Magyar Hirlap.
Detectives said Regoczi caused Ft 81 million worth of damage with 12 companies and Zelenak over Ft 30 million with six firms. All the suspects have lodged complaints."
Source: Hungary Around the Clock.
This news item is one of many published daily by HATC, a premier subscription news service which distributes English-language info about Hungary via email or fax. For a free trial of HATC follow this link and click on 'Free Trial Subscription'.
09.02.2010