Romanian prosecutors investigating two pro-Georgescu influencers for voter bribery

Prosecutors from the Romanian General Prosecutor’s Office are conducting 17 home searches in Bucharest and several counties on Thursday, March 20, targeting influencers Bogdan Peșchir and Makaveli, who promoted controversial politician Călin Georgescu online during the 2024 election campaign. The case involves voter bribery, and the searches aim to establish a connection between the individuals involved and others who may have participated in electoral fraud.

Aside from the capital, police are conducting searches in the counties of Brașov, Botoșani, Călărași, Dolj, Galați, Giurgiu, Maramureș, Mureș, and Timiș. Besides Bogdan Peșchir and Makaveli, another influencer under investigation is Alin Borcan from Timiș, according to G4Media.

Makaveli, whose real name is Alexandru Virgil Zidaru, became active in politics while simultaneously spreading hatred against television networks and traditional media, particularly Antena 3, on TikTok. He was also associated with far-right and controversial politician Diana Sosoaca, who was barred from running for president after the Constitutional Court deemed her unfit for the office of president.

Bogdan Peșchir, in turn, is one of the most well-known figures on TikTok, despite not being a content creator himself. His notoriety stems from the massive donations he makes to content creators, including supporters of Călin Georgescu. Overall, he financed Călin Georgescu’s 2024 campaign with over EUR 380,000, according to the Romanian Intelligence Service (SRI).

Peșchir has worked with cryptocurrency-related companies owned by Gabriel Prodănescu, a dual citizen who emigrated to South Africa in 1995. During the 2024 presidential campaign, a South African company contacted TikTok influencers in Romania, offering them EUR 1,000 each for promotional videos.

An investigation by Info Sud-Est and G4Media shows that influencers who supported Călin Georgescu’s campaign, including some linked to organized crime, were paid via TikTok to promote the pro-Russian candidate. Moreover, declassified documents from the Ministry of Internal Affairs and SRI indicate that these influencers were “involved in promoting and buying votes.”

After the documents were made public, these influencers distanced themselves from Georgescu.