The detention of Ukrainian debt collectors in Hungary could have been Orban’s personal operation

The detention in Hungary of employees of the collection service of Oschadbank in March 2026 did not have proper legal grounds and could have been organized on the personal instructions of the then Prime Minister Viktor Orbán. This is stated in the investigation of the Hungarian independent publication Telex.

According to journalists, Hungarian law enforcement officers and special services were unable to provide evidence that the Ukrainian collectors allegedly posed a threat to the country’s national security.

The collectors were detained during the legal transportation of funds

As a reminder, on March 5, 2026, two cars of the collection service of Oschadbank and seven Ukrainian employees were detained in Hungary.

Oschadbank stated at the time that the transportation of funds and valuables was carried out absolutely legally – within the framework of cooperation with the Austrian Raiffeisen Bank.

The Hungarian authorities explained the detention by suspicions of money laundering and even called the operation the “Ukrainian Gold Convoy”. At the same time, the only argument of the security forces was that among the detainees was allegedly a former general of the Ukrainian special services.

The very next day, all Ukrainian workers were released, and in May, Hungary returned the confiscated money and gold to Ukraine.

Telex: the real reason could be revenge for oil

The Telex investigation claims that the real motive for the detention was political reasons, not the fight against corruption.

According to the publication’s sources, the operation was personally initiated by Viktor Orban after the conflict over oil supplies through the Druzhba pipeline.

Journalists recall that it was on March 5 that Orban publicly stated:

“We will win, and we will win by force — we will force the Ukrainians to resume oil supplies.”

Telex also reports that the decision to conduct the raid was made directly by the Hungarian government, and Orban himself received regular reports on the progress of the operation.

Anti-terrorist special unit involved in the detention

According to journalists, the authorities involved not ordinary investigators, but the TEK anti-terrorist special unit to carry out the operation, which was supposed to create a loud political effect.

After Orban’s party lost the elections, the situation changed: the Hungarian prosecutor’s office opened a new case regarding the possible illegal detention of Ukrainian tax collectors.

The current Prime Minister of Hungary, Peter Magyar, commenting on the investigation, stated that Orban “manually controlled the work of law enforcement officers and special services.”