Police investigation into Rákay Philip's real estate purchase in Rácalmás
The Budapest Police Headquarters is investigating Rákay Philip's company's 2022 land purchase in Rácalmás on suspicion of abuse of authority. Suspicions centre on prior knowledge of the Hankook factory expansion plans.
Investigation launched into land purchase by Rákay Philip's company in Rácalmás
The Budapest Police Headquarters is conducting an investigation into the former land purchase by Rácalmás Greendustry Projekt Zrt. on suspicion of abuse of authority committed through a breach of official duty, the BRFK confirmed to Telex. The case was initiated by a private individual's report.
Rákay Philip's company acquired a 42-hectare industrial area in Rácalmás in November 2022, directly adjacent to the South Korean Hankook tyre manufacturer's Hungarian headquarters. This occurred a year after the government designated Iváncsá and Rácalmás as special economic zones in 2021. Greendustry subsequently sold part of the land to South Korean Hankook Tire and granted the company a pre-emptive right on the remaining portion.
According to company registry data and 2023 financial statements, the Rácalmás Greendustry Projekt Zrt. achieved after-tax profit of 1 billion 433 million forint from the transaction in a short timeframe. The investigation focuses on the suspicion that the company may have received prior notice of Hankook's factory expansion plans from state, government or other sources, thereby obtaining significant valuable insider information.
Péter Szijjártó, the foreign affairs and foreign trade minister, announced in November 2023 that Hankook Tire would make an investment of approximately 210 billion forint and create 450 new jobs in Rácalmás, where the company would manufacture tyres for heavy goods vehicles and buses.
Telex approached Rákay Philip to obtain his position on the report and the 2022 land purchase. Rákay replied that he would be able to respond in detail to the questions in the following week, as his company's legal representative is currently abroad.
This is not the only official proceeding in which Rákay's name has emerged this year: in September, the National Tax and Customs Administration launched an investigation against an unknown perpetrator on suspicion of budget fraud in connection with the film "Now or Never!"
Source: Telex