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BUCHAREST, Romania (AP)_ One of Romania’s most influential media owners was detained Thursday on allegations he aided a man convicted in the collapse of an investment scheme.
Prosecutors said Sorin Ovidiu Vantu, who owns Realitatea TV news channel, helped Nicolae Popa leave Romania illegally before he was sentenced to 15 years in prison for fraud, and gave him financial aid while he was abroad.
Prosecutors searched Vantu’s house Thursday and took away computers. The homes of three business associates were also being searched in connection with the case, Mediafax news agency reported.
Recently, Vantu’s two Bucharest residences and a vacation home in the Danube Delta were under surveillance, the daily newspaper Cotidianul reported, citing friends and neighbors.
Vantu told reporters his detention Thursday was politically motivated, suggesting President Traian Basescu had a hand in it.
For months, Basescu has publicly identified Vantu and another television owner as enemies. Realitatea TV reports critically on the government and Basescu.
