The name of a Romanian man is involved in the French-German corruption investigation targeting European aircraft producer Airbus. The man is called Constantin Ster and lives in Bacau.

“He is thought to have pocketed more than EUR 5 million, through a company, from the airplane manufacturer, which was still called EADS at the time,” according to Der Spiegel.

The money was allegedly paid in exchange for the procurement of orders. The confusing part is that Ster doesn’t seem a “big fish”. He recently acquired a Dacia Duster with a bank loan.

“Ster seemed bewildered when he was faced with such accusations from investigators. If he hadn't received the money, then where did it end up, they asked? What role was played by Ster, owner of a 15,000-euro car bought on credit, the straw man of the corporation?” Der Spiegel wrote.

Prosecutors from Munich interrogated the Romanian man at the end of 2015.

Airbus has 134,000 employees and an annual turnover of EUR 67 billion. The investigators are expected to hand down indictments in the coming months, against a whole list of former EADS executives and their henchmen.

The German prosecutors also investigated EADS for possible corruption acts related to a contract for securing Romania’s borders. However, the case was closed in 2016, as the prosecutors didn’t manage to find enough evidence that would lead to indictments.

editor@romania-insider.com