Prosecutors conduct searches in case concerning Russian millionaires living under Romanian identities

Prosecutors and police in Romania conducted 17 searches on Tuesday, November 25, in a case concerning falsified documents for persons from Russia, Ukraine, the Republic of Moldova, and other states of the former USSR. The searches mainly took place in Suceava county, on the border with Ukraine, but also in Bucharest.

Some of the targeted individuals are those who housed foreign citizens in order to obtain identity documents for them, the final goal being to obtain a passport. Public officials were involved in the process, according to ProTV.

These officials, employed at a population records service and a city hall, helped foreign citizens in the process of obtaining Romanian citizenship by registering them as living at a certain address, even if the building in question was abandoned or unsuitable for residence. Other properties were listed without the consent of the owners.

Investigations will continue in the case of 18 individuals who obtained identity cards and passports after submitting falsified citizenship certificates, according to the prosecutors.

Earlier this year, prosecutors discovered that thousands of Russian and Ukrainian citizens live in tax havens under fraudulently obtained Romanian identities. Specifically, between 2023–2024, over 1,700 individuals born in the Russian Federation, Ukraine, the Republic of Moldova, or other former USSR member states fictitiously established their domicile within the jurisdiction of a population records service in Suceava County.

On the list, judicial sources say, there are more than 100 Russian and Ukrainian multi-millionaires, all born in the Russian Federation.

Romanian investigators have requested the assistance of Interpol to locate the individuals and confiscate their documents.

Alongside the criminal investigation, the authorities in Bucharest have also begun cancelling the identity cards and passports in question. Some documents have been annulled administratively, while others are currently pending in courts.

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