Romania's president has denied interfering with the justice system after a video recording surfaced where his brother appears to say the president was aware of attempts to lower the sentence of a convict.
President Traian Basescu denied Thursday he had meddled with the justice system and sought to distance himself from his brother, Mircea Basescu. He also stressed that he will not intervene with any state institution to protect his brother, Mircea Basescu, who is allegedly involved in a corruption case.
"He is a major and responsible for what he does. If he did something illegal, he will have to answer in court, like any Romanian citizen," Basescu told a special press conference at the Cotroceni Presidential Palace.
The president said he regrets that his brother got himself into a situation, for which consequences he had to anwser.
In the recording, broadcast on Romanian television, Mircea Basescu spoke to the son of Sandu Anghel, who is imprisoned for attempted murder. He appeared to acknowledge he had received 250,000 euros ($338,968) to reduce Anghel's sentence and said the president was aware of the case.
Mircea Basescu, who was questioned by an anti-corruption prosecutor Thursday, has admitted the video is genuine but says his comments were taken out of context and denies wrongdoing. He was arrested for 24 hours.