Romanian prosecutors reportedly have evidence of far-right plot aimed to "affect democratic process"

The Prosecutor General's Office is in possession of evidence about a plot organised by former presidential candidate Călin Georgescu and a group of former French Foreign Legion fighters coordinated by Horațiu Potra, still active under contracts with African states, who immediately after the annulment of the presidential elections on December 6, 2024, were planning to "infiltrate peaceful protests and trigger chaos through violent actions," according to Digi24 TV station.

The implied final goal of the plot was taking over the control of state institutions.

Following searches at his home revealing possession of illegal weapons on February 26, prosecutors requested and the High Court admitted the preventive arrest, in absentia, of Horațiu Potra, currently in Dubai, his 18-year-old son, and another relative, Hotnews.ro announced on March 1. Other 16 persons of the 18 searched by prosecutors on February 26 were placed under preventive custody, with the other two placed under home arrest.

During a search of his home, Police found large amounts of lethal weapons, ammunition, and cash. Potra admitted it held the weapons and ammunition against the law but claimed the money was earned legally.

According to Digi24, investigators show that at a meeting on December 7 held at a horse farm near Bucharest, the foundations of a "well-structured" plan were laid, and "strategic, meticulously planned decisions" were made that began to be implemented immediately after the meeting. The plan involved the use of violence.

The military capabilities of the group of mercenaries and the close ties between Calin Georgescu and the mercenaries are described in great detail, but no details are provided about the later stages of the plan that would have followed after the "chaos" was generated.

The information about the investigations leaked by prosecutors to DigiTV are leading to the conclusion that Georgescu and his paramilitary group were preparing a coup d'etat. Such a scenario is also mentioned in another piece of evidence – a discussion held over the phone by Georgescu with Marian Motocu, already charged with controlling a far-right organisation that aims to propagate far-right ideologies and recruit new members to commit violence against Jews, politicians, political parties, and foreigners.

The conversation between Motocu and Georgescu found by prosecutors in the former's phone during investigations and previously leaked to media, dating from September 2024, indicates that the two were planning actions aimed at taking control over state institutions in January 2025 (after Georgescu would have won the presidential elections).