Pál Völner may have accepted a bribe on the very day of taking the parliamentary oath too.Continue reading
The Prosecutor General’s Office interrogated former state secretary Pál Völner as a suspect on Wednesday, after parliament voted to lift his immunity on Tuesday.
This article was originally published on our sister-site, Ungarn Heute.
On Wednesday, the former state secretary was also subjected to a house search. The politician is accused of corruption, against which he has submitted a complaint. According to his lawyer, Gábor Papp, Völner denied the accusations in his statement. He is free to defend himself.
The prosecutor’s office has so far interrogated 13 people regarding the corruption scandal. According to the charges, Völner had regularly received 2-5 million forints from the president of the Hungarian Chamber of Bailiffs, who was arrested in early November. In total, the former state secretary is said to have been paid HUF 83 million, among other things in order to appoint certain persons as executors, who are supported by the president.
On Tuesday, minutes after his immunity was lifted, Pál Völner voluntarily reported to the prosecutor’s office but was not questioned because he had not been summoned, and the prosecutor’s office said it was not “timely” to question him.
It is interesting to note that the Fidesz politician can receive two dismissal settlements in parallel with his criminal proceedings. After resigning as state secretary, he can file a claim for three months’ severance pay, or HUF 3.9 million (10,600 euros). He is also entitled to further compensation after his term in Parliament.
Source: 24.hu
Featured image via Lajos Soós/MTI