Former Secretary of State at the Ministry of European Projects, Dan Dumitrescu, is being prosecuted by DNA for influence peddling on an ongoing basis for actions taken while he was an advisor in the Office of the Secretary of State at the Ministry of Health. He would receive a total of 67,000 lei from the businessman, either directly or through one of the other two suspects.

Dumitrescu was dismissed from his post at the Ministry of Europrojects on August 26 at his request.

“Prosecutors of the Department for Combating Crimes Similar to Corruption of the National Anti-Corruption Directorate issued an order to prosecute the suspects: DAN DUMITRESKU, at the time of the events, an adviser to the office of the State Secretary of the Ministry of Health, now the secretary of the State Department within the Ministry of Investments and European Projects, in whose custody the commission of an ongoing crime of influence peddling was detained; two businessmen who were arrested for influence peddling crimes committed in the form of authorship and complicity,” DNA reported, according to News.ro.

According to the prosecutor’s office, in the period from February to August 2016, Dumitrescu, as an advisor in the Ministry of Health, whose main task was “Coordination of the unit for the implementation of European projects, communication with the Parliament”, allegedly from a businessman (witness in the case) unlawful benefit (money and other services, including the employment of his wife as a psychologist in a project financed by non-refundable funds) and would have received from him directly or through one of the other two suspects, the total amount of 67,000 lei.

He would demand and receive the corresponding advantages in the context in which he promised the witness that he would have a predictable influence on some decision-making factors in several ministries in order to have access, approval and development on favorable terms of some projects financed from European funds for the association , belonging to the witness, as well as unlocking some sums of money for current projects.

Between August 2015 and January 2016, one of the businessmen, also a suspect in the case, in the context of which he made it clear that he would have influence over some government officials from several ministries, allegedly offered the same witness to participate in several auctions that he would assure that he would win, organized by his company in order to receive European funds.

In exchange for winning the auctions, the suspect allegedly demanded the witness transfer an amount from 34,000 euros to 300,000 lei.

“Two auctions were cancelled, and in the third, won by the witness’s company, after the execution of the contract and the collection of European funds, the witness refused to transfer the sum of 300,000 lei to the suspect. previously declared,” the DNA notes.

The suspects were notified of the procedural status in accordance with Art. 307 of the Criminal Procedure Code.