Romanian prosecutors began investigating some of the financial backers and supporters of far-right pro-Russian independent candidate Calin Georgescu, the virtually unknown politician who came in first place during the now-annulled first round of the presidential elections.

The first to be investigated was the man allegedly financing Georgescu's massive TikTok campaign with unreported crypto funds. The second is a former mercenary-turned-politician who planned to intimidate opponents of the former presidential candidate.

On Saturday, December 7, prosecutors conducted three house searches in Brașov, including at the residence of Bogdan Peșchir, the main suspect in the illegal financing of Călin Georgescu's TikTok campaign for the presidential elections. His name was included in the report presented by the Romanian Intelligence Service (SRI) to the Supreme Council of National Defense (CSAT).

The Financial Backer 

The declassified report provides additional information about the suspect’s activities. Bogdan Peșchir allegedly made donations exceeding EUR 1 million on TikTok and payments of USD 381,000 to users involved in promoting Călin Georgescu. The candidate had repeatedly publicly stated he had spent no money in his campaign, despite gaining massive exposure.

One study into the online campaign of the candidate and related groups shows that "a coordinated network of Facebook pages, related to the far-right Alliance for the Union of Romanians (AUR), carried out a large-scale advertising campaign. 4,140 political ads were identified, collectively reaching an audience of 160 million. These campaigns, with a budget ranging from EUR 167,900 to EUR 264,909, repeatedly violated Meta’s advertising policies, including requirements for transparency and prohibitions against targeting individuals based on protected characteristics."

The TikTok ads, however, were likely more important in swaying voters. 

"Using the TikTok account ‘bogpr,’ Peșchir made donations on TikTok exceeding EUR 1 million. After the matter became a topic of public debate, the involvement of ‘bogpr’ in financing the promotion of Călin Georgescu on the platform was confirmed by TikTok representatives in discussions with Romanian authorities on November 28, 2024,” the SRI explained in the report declassified by the Presidential Administration. 

As a result of the searches in Brasov, investigators confiscated USD 7 million in cryptocurrencies. Several devices, computers, and storage media were also confiscated and will be examined by prosecutors, according to Digi24.

The searches targeted “the possible involvement of an individual in the illegal financing of an electoral campaign for a candidate in the Romanian Presidential elections, through the use of funds suspected to have originated from criminal activities, which were subsequently introduced into a money laundering process,” according to the Economic Crime Investigation Directorate and the Directorate for Combating Organized Crime (DIICOT), as stated in a press release. 

The accusations against Bogdan Peșchir, who was apprehended at his home the same day, include voter corruption, money laundering, and computer fraud. 

The raids on Saturday also targeted leaders of the Legionary Movement, who had participated in the commemoration of Corneliu Zelea Codreanu in Tâncăbești, 40km outside of Bucharest. Seven of these individuals are now under judicial supervision.

In a separate case, investigators have charged five TikTokers with incitement to hatred. In the past week, they posted photos or videos brandishing weapons and making death threats.

The Armed Mercenary 

The next day, Sunday, December 8, several cars carrying approximately 20 passengers in possession of firearms, bladed weapons, and pyrotechnic materials were stopped in traffic across Prahova, Dâmbovița, and Ilfov counties, and Bucharest.

In one of the cars was Horațiu Potra (opening picture), a former member of the French Foreign Legion and reportedly the coordinator of private security for Călin Georgescu. He was stopped in traffic by police at around 3 AM while heading to Bucharest. The luxury vehicle he was traveling in, driven by a 22-year-old man, was found to contain money, weapons, including a pistol, a tear gas dispersal device, and other sharp objects.

Potra was taken to the Prahova County Police Headquarters and was detained for offenses related to the violation of the firearms and ammunition regime and public incitement.

Sources from Euronews Romania say that Potra and his associates had a list of names, including journalists, whom they were set to intimidate to prevent them from talking negatively about Georgescu.

Potra’s defenders state that there is no mention in the case file of any connection between him and Călin Georgescu.

"At this moment, he is under arrest for 24 hours, and criminal procedure dictates that before the detention measure expires, a judicial control measure, preventive arrest, or release can be decided. We have not been informed yet. What we have been told is that they will decide if additional evidence emerges," said Christiana Mondea, a lawyer from the Sibiu Bar Association. 

Potra, 54, came close to being elected mayor of Mediaș in the local elections last summer, losing by fewer than 250 votes to a candidate from the National Liberal Party (PNL). In his 21-page wealth declaration, Potra lists over one hundred properties, including land and buildings, gold bars worth more than one million euros, and 14 bank accounts holding hundreds of thousands of euros in various currencies. 

He worked in the Congo training the Congolese army (FARDC) and protecting the cities of Goma and Sake from local M23 rebels, supported by the Rwandan army. In the Central African Republic, he managed security for mining companies operating in Sierra Leone. He also claims that between February 2010 and January 2012, he served as a Security Advisor for the nephew of the king of Qatar (in Jordan, Qatar, Egypt, and the EU).

Accused in the past of having ties to the Russian Wagner mercenaries, which he rejected, Potra is also known for his pro-Russian social media posts, in which he publicly argued that Romania should stop sending weapons and ammunition to Ukraine.

Thirteen years ago, Potra was acquitted in a DIICOT case where he was accused of drug trafficking. However, he received a two-year and eight-month suspended sentence for illegal possession of firearms. In 2010, police commissioner Traian Berbeceanu pointed out that Potra was training men in areas near Sibiu and Mediaș in shooting, hand-to-hand combat training, survival exercises, and other such activities.

The former presidential candidate, Călin Georgescu, stated that he has never met and does not know Horațiu Potra or Bogdan Peșchir.

radu@romania-insider.com

(Photo source: Inquam Photos | George Călin)