The district court in Blagoevgrad (southwestern Bulgaria) approved on Tuesday, April 19, the extradition of former Romanian Minister of Tourism and Regional Development Elena Udrea to Romanian authorities, thus enforcing the European arrest warrant issued by a court in Bucharest on April 7.

Her lawyers have five days to appeal the ruling, Economica.net reported.

Elena Udrea has to serve a final six-year sentence in Romania, and she was planning to ask for asylum in Greece, claiming she is a victim of political revenge.

Udrea was detained on April 7 by Bulgarian border police as she attempted to enter Greece via the Kulata border crossing.

In 2018, Elena Udrea fled to Costa Rica before being found by Interpol and extradited to Romania a year later. 

andrei@romania-insider.com

(Photo source: Inquam Photos/Octav Ganea)