István Szakács questioned: prosecution cites police independent decision
The Budapest Chief Prosecutor's Office says police questioned the megaphone propagandist as a suspect without prior approval. Szakács filed a complaint against the suspicion.
Prosecution: police decided independently on questioning
The Budapest Chief Prosecutor's Office responded on Thursday with a statement to questions regarding the questioning of megaphone propagandist István Szakács. According to Telex, the prosecution clearly places responsibility on the police: "The police independently decided to conduct a suspect interrogation and informed the Budapest Chief Prosecutor's Office about it in advance by telephone."
The Standby Police National Investigative Bureau notified the prosecution in writing on 3 July 2026 that it had ordered an investigation into the crime of threatening to commit a terrorist act. The investigation was based on a video message published by the influencer at the end of June 2026. Four days later, on 7 July, the investigating authority informed the prosecution by telephone that it was conducting a search at Szakács's premises, bringing him in, and interrogating him as a suspect.
The responsible prosecutor verbally warned the investigating authority: "the investigation must pay particular attention to examining whether the given act actually realises the relevant statutory requirements of the Criminal Code" — as stated in the statement.
The following day, after news about Szakács appeared, the prosecution requested information from the police. The police confirmed by telephone that they had conducted a search at the person's premises and had interrogated him as a suspect. Szakács filed a complaint against the suspicion and was not taken into custody.
The Budapest Chief Prosecutor's Office emphasised that under criminal procedure law, during the investigation phase — that is, before suspect interrogation — the investigating authority acts independently, no prosecutorial approval is required, and none was given.
Along with the complaint against the suspicion, case files arrived at the prosecution from the police on Thursday morning. "The chief prosecutor's office will inform the public of the outcome of the complaint review," the institution concluded its statement.
Prime Minister Viktor Orbán and Interior Minister Gábor Pósfai also commented on the matter. Pósfai wrote that the investigating authority "conducted all substantive procedural actions in coordination with the prosecution", and the police "act independently and in accordance with the law."
István Szakács reported on his Facebook page early Wednesday morning that he had been "arrested". Subsequently, Judit Czunyiné Bertalan, leader of the Fidesz-backed Védvonal, announced that they had learnt of Szakács being taken into custody and would secure his defence with the best lawyers.
Szakács is among the most active Orbán propagandists. In 2024, he caused considerable outrage when he publicly messaged Dániel Karsai, who suffers from an incurable disease: "take two boxes of Xanax, see you later." He later acknowledged that it was "a huge stupidity" to say this.
Source: Telex