Hungarian authorities have uncovered nearly $19.5 million in cash hidden in farm buildings, warehouses and forests as part of a corruption investigation involving a former minister under ex-Prime Minister Viktor Orbán.
Miklós Seszták, who served as Hungary’s Minister of National Development for four years during Orbán’s 16-year rule, is accused of accepting bribes in a scheme involving the country’s state transport company. He has denied any wrongdoing.
The discovery followed a two-day search across several locations in Hungary, with investigators finding bundles of banknotes inside safes, buried in woodlands and concealed in agricultural and residential buildings.
The National Asset Recovery and Protection Office (NVVH), which announced the discovery, said the recovered money amounted to “5,071,632,000 forints, €2,658,350 and $1,257,100”.
The combined value is approximately $19.5 million. The money has since been deposited into the Hungarian State Treasury, according to the agency.
Reacting to the discovery on Friday, Prime Minister Péter Magyar described it as the end of the “mafia”.
The NVVH was established to investigate corruption allegations dating back to the Orbán administration. Magyar has named the initiative “Operation Purgatory” as part of his government’s anti-corruption campaign.
Magyar unseated Orbán in a landslide election in April, campaigning on promises of sweeping reforms and a crackdown on corruption. Since taking office, he has moved to reverse several policies introduced by his predecessor.
Orbán’s administration faced longstanding allegations of corruption and cronyism, including claims that lucrative government contracts were awarded to political allies. The former prime minister strongly denied the allegations.
The European Union previously characterised Hungary under Orbán as an “electoral autocracy”.
Seszták and another former minister, alongside former central bank chief Gyorgy Matolcsy, have been under arrest since September over separate corruption investigations. All three have denied wrongdoing.
Meanwhile, Hungarian authorities on Monday detained Orbán’s brother and three other individuals in connection with a people-smuggling investigation.
The former prime minister dismissed the development as political revenge, saying: “In this dirty game, the aim is the elimination of the political opponent and the establishment of a one-party system.
“I am the target, my younger brother is just a tool.”
Faridah Abdulkadiri
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