Hungary cancels deportation, entry ban for Oschadbank cash collectors
The General Directorate of the Police for Foreigners of Hungary on May 18 canceled the decision on deportation and a three-year ban on entry and stay in the Schengen area regarding seven employees of the state-owned Oschadbank, the financial institution said.
According to the report, the Hungarian side also ruled to immediately delete the relevant records from state registers.
"The full cancellation of the decisions regarding our employees is a confirmation of Oschadbank’s rightness. We have protected not only the rights of our people but also the reputation of a state financial institution operating exclusively within the limits of international law," Chairman of the Management Board of the bank Yuriy Katsion said.
The basis for this decision was an official notice from the competent authority for constitutional protection of Hungary regarding the withdrawal of previous conclusions about the alleged threat to national security by Ukrainian citizens, the financial institution said.
This notification arrived after the relevant decisions were challenged in court; however, the Hungarian side independently canceled the applied restrictions without waiting for the completion of the judicial review in Budapest.
The law firm Horvathlawyers (Hungary) provided legal support to the bank in Hungary, and the law firm Asters acted as the national advisor.
As reported, on March 5 in Hungary, during a special operation by the Counter-Terrorism Center (TEK) at a gas station on the M5 motorway, two Ukrainian cash collection vehicles carrying $40 million, EUR 35 million, and 9 kg of gold were detained. Seven cash collectors were also detained, who were later released and sent to Ukraine.
The National Police of Ukraine initiated criminal proceedings regarding the kidnapping of Ukrainian citizens and the theft of Oschadbank official vehicles on the territory of Hungary.
President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelenskyy called the detention of the Oschadbank cash collection convoy in Hungary an act of banditry. On March 9, the Ambassador of Hungary to Ukraine, Antal Heizer, was summoned to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Ukraine, where a resolute protest was expressed over the seizure of hostages and valuables.
On March 12, it was reported that the cash collection vehicles of the state-owned Oschadbank, which were illegally detained in Hungary, were handed over to representatives of Oschadbank and Ukrainian diplomats. At the same time, the funds and valuables in the amount of $40 million, EUR 35 million, and 9 kg of bank gold remained detained in Hungary.
On May 6, Oschadbank announced the return of the funds and valuables detained in Hungary in full.
