Phone tapping scandal involving Romanian President and former tax administration head emerges

A new phone tapping scandal has emerged in the Romanian media, and this time it even involves the country's president Traian Basescu. The phone tapping is part of a case against the former tax administration head Sorin Blejnar, who was sent to court for having helped criminals.

Romanian website money.ro published the transcript of a phone conversation in September 2010 between Blejnar and allegedly the country's president Traian Basescu, labeled with his initial TB in the document. Blejnar addressed him as Mr President and talked to him about construction companies, including Tehnologca Radion, and the Rompetrol debt. Basescu warns Blejnar the promised EUR 54 mln payment from Rompetrol was a scam to take over control of the company from the state. Blejnar and other 16 people were sent to court in September for creating and supporting a criminal group, which allegedly was involved in tax evasion and money laundry in a file nicknamed 'Gasoline'. The phone tapping was part of Blejnar's file and prosecutors are now investigating whether it was legal to include these recordings, even if they were not directly connected to the case. Recordings also include former Tourism Minister Elena Udrea and prosecutor Alina Bica, former state secretary in the Justice Ministry. Phone tapping has appeared in several high profile cases involving business people or politicians, including among others media mogul Sorin Ovidiu Vantu and former Prime Minister Adrian Nastase, now in jail. editor@romania-insider.com (photo source: sxc.hu)