Adrian Sarbu, remanded in custody by General Prosecutor's office prosecutors

Businessman Adrian Sarbu was remanded in custody on Monday, for 24 hours, by prosecutors with the General Prosecutor's office, and is accused of tax evasion, money laundering and embezzlement.

Photo credit: (c) Grigore POPESCU / AGERPRES PHOTO

Sarbu was removed on Monday evening from the General Prosecutor's headquarters while handcuffed and was taken to a police van.

Shortly thereafter, his lawyer confirmed that Sarbu was remanded in custody and that he will be taken on Tuesday to a court with a proposal of preventive arrest.

Adrian Sarbu was taken Monday by mandate to the General Prosecutor's office, where prosecutors notified him that he stands accused of tax evasion in the Mediafax Group case.

Several persons are under criminal investigation for tax evasion in the case.

In a release remitted in December 2014, the General Prosecutor's office showed that through a decision dated April 23, 2014, the company Mediafax Group SA was granted a rescheduling of its fiscal obligations, totalling 3,949,358 lei, over the course of 24 months.

In this respect, the commercial company, its representatives and certain persons within some lawyers' offices involved in the approval of legality of the documents of this company have created and enforced, continually, a scheme to avoid paying taxes and dues by founding some shadow firms in the name of persons with no material possibilities, taking advantage of their situation, firms which were involved in the commercial circuit thus built.

This way, SC Mediafax Group SA was being protected, the responsibility of paying taxes and dues being transferred to the other companies, against which the measures of blocking their bank accounts for not paying their taxes and dues or of...