Raed Arafat appears before military prosecutors as helicopter contraband case moves forward

On Friday, Raed Arafat, head of the Department for Emergency Situations, presented himself at the military prosecutor’s office attached to the Curtea Militară de Apel București, where investigators announced that the administration of evidence in the alleged helicopter contraband case was finished and the dossier would move to the next procedural step permitting a prosecutorial ruling. Military prosecutors may decide to bring charges, dismiss the allegations or close the case entirely.

Arafat, who has contested the confiscation of his personal phone and the seizure of his assets, maintains he was not properly informed of the procedures and rejects the accusation of complicity in the procurement irregularities. On 8 July, prosecutors ordered a comprehensive seizure of his movable and immovable property, which he described as an abusive attempt to discredit him. A court ruling on 14 August lifted several seizures on other suspects but, according to judicial sources, left the seizure on Arafat’s real estate in place.