Romania: From Frying Pan to Legal Fire

http://www.nytimes.com/2015/06/25/world/europe/romania-from-frying-pan-to-legal-fire.html

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An ally of Prime Minister Victor Ponta was indicted on corruption charges, including being an accomplice to embezzling European Union funds and illegally offering incentives to voters, including frying pans, prosecutors said Wednesday. The prime minister’s associate, Sebastian Ghita, who is a lawmaker in the governing coalition, was charged with influence peddling, tax evasion, money laundering, being involved in the misuse of European Union funds and electoral cheating, prosecutors said. Prosecutors accused Mr. Ghita of paying $392,000 to Moldovans who have Romanian citizenship to vote for Mr. Ponta in the November presidential race that he lost. They also say he gave illegal incentives like frying pans to voters in the 2012 parliamentary elections when he won a seat.