Romania’s national anti-corruption directorate (DNA) has ordered a criminal investigation into whether three Timișoara politicians illegally used local council budgets to fund the city’s football team, Poli Timișoara. Gheorghe Chivorchian, General Secretary of the Romanian football federation (FRF), suspended himself in July after prosecutors charged him with accepting money from local authorities in 2008, whilst he was Chairman of the club.

The DNA alleges that during 2008, former Timișoara Mayor, Gheorghe Ciuhandu and Secretary of the local council Ioan Cojocari allocated part of the local council budget towards the team. The DNA also alleges that Ciuhandu and Cojocari, together with legal councillor Delia Dumitru, drew up a form of sponsorship contract known as an ‘association contract’ allocating nine million Leu (€2 million) per year to the club for three years.

The DNA said that according to local legislation, public money cannot be used to fund sponsorship of a private legal entity designed to generate a profit. The DNA also alleges that the local politicians manipulated a local law on physical education and sports (69/2000) to hide the fact that the public grant was illegal. ‘From 2008-2011, 27.1 million Leu [€6 million] from the local budget of the Timișoara municipality was awarded abusively and illegally to S.C. Politehnica Timișoara S.A.’, read a 14 September DNA statement. ‘These amounts […] did not serve the interests of the community, but the interests of a private group organised around S.C. Politehnica 1921 Știința Timișoara & Invest S.A.’

The DNA said that the details of the case were also discovered by auditors working for Timis County, who charged the mentioned defendants with repaying the money owed through the Romanian Court of Auditors. An appeal was rejected by the Timișoara Appeals Court and prosecutors are understood to have seized a property belonging to Gheorghe Ciuhandu and bank accounts belonging to Ioan Cojocari, equivalent to the 27.1 million Leu owed. The DNA said that Ciuhandu and Cojocari have been informed of the criminal charges filed against them.

Poli Timișoara was dissolved in 2012, after twice failing to meet the licensing requirements to play in Romania’s Liga I. The club was relegated to Liga II at the end of the 2010/11 season, despite finishing second, due to failing to meet the licensing requirements. It gained promotion to Liga I at the end of the 2011/12 season, however again failed to achieve the licensing criteria. It is understood that the local council arranged the illicit funding to help the club achieve the licensing criteria.

As reported by the Sports Integrity Initiative in July, Gheorghe Chivorchian, General Secretary of the Romanian football federation (FRF), suspended himself after prosecutors charged him with corruption. It is alleged that Chivorchian gave the green light to accept €1 million from local authorities in 2008, while he was Chairman of Poli Timișoara. Prosecutors allege that Chivorchian forged documents saying that the funds were for player salaries, whereas they were actually used for other purposes, such as to pay off debt.