Romanian ex-finance minister convicted over bribes

BUCHAREST: A former Romanian finance minister and current adviser to the government was sentenced to eight years in prison for taking some 1.4 million euros ($1.7 million) in bribes.

Darius Valcov was accused of helping a Romanian company win public tenders in exchange for backhanders when he was a local mayor in 2009-2013. Raids on Valcov and his associates came across 172 artworks worth over half a million euros as well as gold bars worth 100,000 euros, prosecutors said. Valcov quit after only a few months as finance minister in early 2015 when prosecutors charged him. He has denied the accusations and can appeal Thursday’s verdict.

Despite his legal woes — Valcov is also under investigation in a second case — the 40-year-old was appointed as an adviser to Romania’s left-wing government in late January. His conviction is a fresh success for Romania’s special anti-corruption prosecution unit, the DNA, whose work in one of the EU’s most graft-ridden countries has won plaudits abroad.