Romanian Ex-Minister Fleeing Jail Sentence Caught in Bulgaria

Bulgarian police stopped former Romanian Minister of Tourism and Development Elena Udrea from leaving the country after hearing that a Romanian court had sentenced her to six years in prison.

The final verdict confirmed a sentence originally issued in June 2018 for bribery, abuse of office and tax evasion over a boxing match.

The so-called "Gala Bute" file first came to light in 2011 following a journalistic investigation conducted when Udrea was a minister.

Udrea was stopped on the Bulgarian border with Greece and was still in custody in Petrici in Bulgaria on Friday.

She was being held under a 24-hour detention order issued by the Bulgarian police, which may be extended, meaning that she could spend the whole weekend in custody in Bulgaria.

She had reportedly left Romania for Bulgaria on Thursday morning and, immediately after learning of her final verdict in Sofia, then left for Kulata, Bulgaria's southern border crossing with Greece. She faces extradition back to Romania.

Udrea's lawyer, Tudorel Toader, former Justice Minister in Romania from 2017 to 2019, had filed an appeal seeking annulment of her previous sentence in 2018.

The fact that Udrea tried to evade the execution of her sentence by fleeing to Bulgaria is not punishable by Romanian law, as she was not previously banned from leaving Romania.

Udrea was Minister for Tourism from 2008 to 2009 and for Regional Development and Tourism from 2009 to 2012.