Romanian businessman Horia Simu was sent to court for stripping a local company of its assets, namely the copper producer Elcond from Zalau, north-western Romania. The damage is estimated at over EUR 5.4 million, which should be updated considering a 63.5% inflation rate, reports local Profit.ro.

According to the Directorate for Investigating Organized Crime and Terrorism (DIICOT) prosecutors, in 2014 Simu illegally transferred Elcond’s assets to the company Cuprom Bucuresti, which he controlled. The transfer was based on a fictitious loan contract.

Simu also didn’t make any efforts to recover a EUR 1.4 million debt from Combinatul Metalurgic Phoenix Baia Mare, which he also controlled, so Elcond lost the money. Simu later joined the two companies, Phoenix Baia Mare and Elcond Zalau to create Cuprom Bucuresti, which was the biggest copper producer in Romania. The company went bankrupt in 2008.

In a separate case, the National Anticorruption Directorate has been investigating Simu for trying to bribe Alina Bica, the former head of the DIICOT, to help him with the Elcond Zalau investigation.

editor@romania-insider.com