Ukraine's Oschadbank files complaint alleging abuse of office and act of terrorism over Hungarian authorities' operation against their convoy

The legal representative of Ukraine’s Oschadbank has filed a complaint with the Hungarian Central Investigative Prosecutor’s Office on suspicion of abuse of office and an act of terrorism with regard to the assets seized from the Ukrainian cash-in-transit vehicles, HVGhas reported. Hungarian authorities have yet to provide an explanation as to what their suspicions of money laundering are based on.

With regard to the case of the seven Ukrainian citizens involved in transporting the money, a complaint was filed on grounds of unlawful detention and suspected abuse of office. The Hungarian authorities deported all seven Ukrainians, against which their lawyer filed a petition with the Budapest Metropolitan Court. According to the complaint filed by the bank’s Hungarian attorney Lóránt Horváth, the legal basis for the Hungarian authorities’ control over the assets was not clarified between the measures taken against the money transporters on March 5 and the issuing of the order to seize the assets.

According to the complaint, the suspicion of a terrorist act is based on statements made by János Lázár. The Hungarian government's Minister of Construction and Transportation had previously said the following about the operation: “It is obvious that our actions were not unrelated to the blocking of the oil pipeline. Because if they blackmail us, we can’t be so stupid as to just let it be done to us. We will not return the money to them; the money will remain here for the time being.” This suggests that the intervention was linked to pressure exerted by another state, and it appears that a conscious state decision was made on the Hungarian side to withhold the assets, according to the complaint.

The officers carrying out the operation acted in their official capacity; therefore, they “were able to exercise the powers vested in them in a manner that disregarded the procedural frameworks and safeguards defined by law,” the complaint reads, according to the newspaper’s report.

The Hungarian National Tax and Customs Administration (NAV) returned the Ukrainian savings bank’s armoured trucks to their rightful owner, but the seized assets continue to be held by the Hungarian authorities. The two vehicles were transporting gold and currency worth more than 27 billion forints from Vienna to Kyiv, but the NAV intercepted them near Budapest on suspicion of money laundering.

During the operation, members of the Hungarian Counterterrorism Center pinned the seven Ukrainian citizens involved in the transport to the ground and handcuffed them. They were not charged with anything, and have been deported from Hungary since then.

Last week, the Hungarian government adopted a decree stating that “the legal ownership of the assets seized in the Ukrainian armored vehicles could not be clarified on the spot.” According to Lóránt Horváth, this effectively constitutes an admission by the Hungarian authorities that the assets were seized unlawfully.

The lawyer said that the transport was in full compliance with Hungarian and international standards. “Oschadbank has been transporting funds along this route since 2022 with the knowledge of the Hungarian authorities. The scale of this particular cargo can hardly be considered out of the ordinary,” he said.