Former transport minister Răzvan Cuc has been sent to trial by the National Anticorruption Directorate (DNA) in a case in which he is accused of facilitating a bribe worth more than RON 1 million for the head of the Romanian Automotive Register (RAR), Agerpres reported. A local businessman has also been indicted in the same case.

According to court records, the file has reportedly been registered with the Bucharest Tribunal, where a judge is scheduled to review the preventive measures imposed on the two defendants on Friday, February 6.

Prosecutors alleged that in September last year, the RAR launched a public procurement procedure worth around RON 23 million, VAT included, for maintenance services covering vehicle inspection and technical diagnostic equipment.

Between September and November 2025, businessman Cătălin Daniel Bușe, with the assistance of Răzvan Cuc, allegedly promised the RAR’s general director, Mihai Alecu, who later became a whistleblower in the case, a bribe amounting to 6% of the total value of a framework agreement to be renewed between RAR and Euro Quip International SRL, a company administered by Bușe.

The bribe was allegedly promised during several meetings and conversations in exchange for actions aimed at favourably appointing members of the tender evaluation committee and ensuring the contract with Bușe’s company was signed as quickly as possible. 

Prosecutors further claimed that the bribe was to be paid in instalments at intervals of approximately three to five months.

irina.marica@romania-insider.com

(Photo source: Inquam Photos/Ovidiu Micsik)