Crin Antonescu criticizes the treatment of Călin Georgescu and says house arrest would have been sufficient

Crin Antonescu criticized the way Călin Georgescu is being treated in the judicial proceedings, arguing that keeping him in pretrial detention for more than a month, as well as transporting him to court in handcuffs, are disproportionate measures. The former PNL leader made the statements on the “Marius Tucă Show” program, stressing that his position does not amount to support for Georgescu’s political messages or actions.

Antonescu believes that the former presidential candidate could have been placed under house arrest with monitoring, without being transported to court under conditions he considers reserved for people accused of extremely serious offenses. He said he was not passing judgment on Georgescu’s guilt, but was challenging the proportionality of the preventive measures.

The former liberal leader also questioned the interpretation of a gesture attributed to Georgescu as a Legionnaire salute. Antonescu argued that raising one’s hand to greet the public can be an ordinary gesture and cited images featuring public figures including Nicușor Dan, Ursula von der Leyen and himself.

Antonescu further said that Romania’s president and the parties opposing Georgescu should have publicly raised the issue. He added, however, that he had no information about pressure being exerted on magistrates.

In judicial proceedings, the Bucharest Court of Appeal upheld the DIICOT prosecutors’ challenge and ordered an extension of the pretrial detention. Georgescu is being investigated for forming an organized criminal group and fraud with particularly serious consequences. The insistence on the disproportionate nature of the measures is Crin Antonescu’s position, and the charges do not constitute a final conviction.