Romania forest mafia cases face missing evidence and new lawsuits

Ion Tăerel Romsilva lawsuit forest mafia missing DGA DVDs timber corruption

Former forest district chief Ion Tăerel, known as "Butoane," is under investigation in two criminal cases linked to the 2019 "forest mafia" probe. One case concerns falsification of documents, while the other alleges theft or destruction of court files. Prosecutors’ evidence is compromised after several DVDs containing anti‑corruption Directorate (DGA) intercepts were found missing, replaced only by empty envelopes, raising questions about the integrity of the investigation.

At the same time, the state forestry company Romsilva has sued journalists and anti‑corruption investigators for €200,000 in damages, claiming defamation after they reported on timber‑mafia activities. The summons arrived shortly after raids on a Maramureș wood‑mafia group and following a major forest fire linked to the major timber firm Austro Someș, which has ties to other influential logging companies.

Both developments highlight the ongoing legal battles and alleged attempts to suppress evidence within Romania's broader forest‑mafia scandal.

Sources

Unde au dispărut DVD-urile cu interceptările DGA din dosarul lui Tăerel-,,Butoane”!? - Ştiri locale de ultima ora, stiri video - Ştiri Gorjeanul. ro [www.gorjeanul.ro]

9 days ago

Ce pățești când te pui cu Mafia Lemnului. Ce am primit, la sfârșitul săptămânii trecute, la birou, la întoarcerea din păduri - România curată [www.romaniacurata.ro]

9 days ago