Hungary’s National Asset Recovery and Protection Office (NVVH) announced on Friday the seizure of $19.5 million (£14.8 million) in cash. The funds were discovered buried in forests, concealed within agricultural and warehouse buildings, hidden in residential properties, and stored in safes located in secluded areas. The operation was conducted over two days as part of an ongoing criminal investigation into Miklós Seszták, who served as Hungary’s minister of national development from 2014 to 2018.
Seszták is accused of participating in a bribery scheme involving the state transport company, which allegedly purchased secondhand buses at inflated prices. The investigation is part of a broader accountability effort led by the government of Prime Minister Péter Magyar, who assumed power in April after winning a landslide election that ended the 16-year tenure of nationalist leader Viktor Orbán. Magyar described the seizure as a significant development, stating, “This officially marks the end of the Fidesz-KDNP mafia!”
According to the NVVH, the total cash recovered during the searches amounted to 5,071,632,000 forints, €2,658,350, and US $1,257,100. Finance minister András Kármán noted via Facebook that 12 Treasury employees were required to count the money over an eight-hour period using five specialized counting machines before depositing the funds into the Hungarian State Treasury’s account. Beyond the case involving Seszták, authorities have also taken two other former ministers from the Orbán era and the former premier’s brother into custody as part of intensified graft inquiries.
