Hungary says it sends Ukrainian Oschadbank collectors home

Seven Ukrainian collectors detained by Hungarian tax and customs authorities will be “expelled from Hungary.”

According to Ukrinform, this was announced on the social network X by Hungarian government spokesman Zoltán Kovács.

According to him, the Hungarian National Tax and Customs Administration has identified seven Ukrainian citizens detained in connection with the transportation of large amounts of cash and gold through Hungary.

The spokesman noted that according to Hungarian authorities, “the operation was supervised by a former general of the Ukrainian Security Service, with a former major of the Ukrainian Air Force acting as deputy and assisted by individuals with military experience.”

“Based on these findings, all seven individuals will be expelled from Hungary,” he said.

As reported by Ukrinform, on the night of March 6, Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha said that in Budapest, Hungarian authorities took seven Ukrainian citizens, employees of Oschadbank, hostage and stole the money they were transporting. According to him, seven Oschadbank employees were traveling in two bank vehicles between Austria and Ukraine, transporting cash as part of regular services between state banks.

Later that day, Hungary’s National Tax and Customs Administration confirmed the detention of seven Oschadbank cash collectors and two vehicles carrying cash on a route from Austria to Ukraine, stating that it was conducting a criminal investigation into suspected money laundering.