Audio recordings and documents: Connections from the city hall buried with money from the Malaxa Hospital – ”The manager Secureanu daily withdraws cash from the hospital through a company that was dissolved a year and a half ago!”
Published at Monday, 28 November 2016, 06:11
1.6 million lei in cash were paid through the phantom company RYS Force, although Gazeta discovered the company had been dissolved in July 2015!
”Every single day, manager Florin Secureanu withdraws between 2,000 and 3,000 lei in cash from the hospital cashier based on invoices printed by the IT guy!” - EMPLOYEE OF MALAXA, SOURCE OF GAZETA
- The newspaper holds several recordings where the head of the Malaxa Hospital humiliates his employees: ”I am the manager, you f***ing idiot!”
- He totally lost his temper when the employees told him that they no longer agreed to cover the illegalities.
- ”As a Hospital of the Municipality, Malaxa has a huge budget! With the funds that were stolen, they could have built another hospital besides this one”, says an employee of the clinic from Bariera Vergului.
- According to the inside stories and documents, the invoices of the dummy companies owned by the manager were basically fabricated in the hospital, and the stamp was in the drawer!
- Following the route of money, the newspaper has discovered that RYS Force Company SRL, the company through which thousands of cash withdrawals were done, continues to take money from the hospital, although the court dissolved it in July 2015 and it was deregistered in November 2016!
- We publish invoices that illustrate that ”They went as far as to reimburse burials for relatives of the city hall connections!”.
- Manager Secureanu initially agreed to the dialogue but after finding out what we were investigating, he turned off his phone.
Investigation by Mirela Neag, Răzvan Luțac, Cătălin Tolontan, Cristi Preda and Alex Nicodim (photo)
The yelling is being heard, indistinctly and disconnectedly, from the station of bus no. 202!
No metaphor intended.
The travelers turn their heads, trying to guess what is the deal with the yelling that invades the sidewalk.
From the hospital, manager Florin Secureanu yells at the ”Malaxa” employees.
Yesterday he was in London, at the Wax Museum, he was taking a selfie with the Queen’s figure, today he came back home.
”I am the manager, you f***ing idiot!”
”You c**t, fix the problem with Bograve and all that, do you hear me?!”
”If you are not in the mood for work anymore, go the f**k home, all of you and I’ll go to another hospital!”
”F**k you! You f***ing idiot, I am the manager!”
A burnt out financial director
The teary voice of the woman who steps in, is so weak that it can be scarcely heard two meters away towards her boss.
She is the financial director, ”probably the only financial director from the hospitals in Bucharest who comes to the office at 6 o’clock in the morning”, her colleagues say.
Why does she come so early?
Because, according to the newspaper’s information, at ”Malaxa” the accounting is practically kept twice!
According to the inside testimonies from the hospital, ”the financial director keeps things in balance, so that to maintain the activity afloat, but also to satisfy the eccentric financial whims of Secureanu”.
When the financial ballet among tens of bogus suppliers is no longer possible, the employees get their share of curses and threats. Women are favored.
”You can all suck my d**k”
”You stupid c**t, if it wasn’t for me you weren’t here, you f***ing f**ktard. The same for you, you idiot!”
”If you don’t stop that, you can all suck my d**k!”
They couldn’t take it anymore
Stop what?
The fact that they told Florin Secureanu they are no longer willing to fabricate made-up invoices and fake contracts.
Gazeta talked to many people from ”Malaxa”, from several departments.
They describe a system where ”a multitude of companies receive money that returns, in cash or services, to the manager, his connections and to the ones supporting them”.
It is surreal, but the story has been going on for almost a decade!
They feel guilty
”So that you get an idea on what we are talking about: the hospital’s money covers even the funerals for the relatives of the city hall connections!”, a source shows us two invoices with funeral services, paid by ”Malaxa”.
After years of accepting all this invoicing for made-up services, people have decided to break the chain.
Having been personally humiliated and feeling guilty for their deeds, they confront the boss who, when he wants to make an impression, wanders around the hospital dressed up with the uniform of the Malta Knights.
Their resistance has triggered the manager’s tantrums and threats - these moments were caught on tape.
9
years have passed since Florin Secureanu was appointed the manager of the Malaxa Hospital, on Vergului Boulevard, in the Pantelimon area
9
million euros are spent by ”Malaxa” on an yearly basis, the majority from the public health budget, not to mention the investments done by the City Hall!
”You scum!”
”You worthless s**t, say the truth! (…) And was I the one to approve that, you worthless s**t?! You would serve them for signing, you f***ing f**ktard!”
"From now on, everything you sign, you bring it first to me to see! You scum! (…) And you have the guts to speak, you f***ing f**ktard!"
”Let’s go, all of you, go to jail!”
Aware that what he has done for all these years comes with consequences, he yelled at them at some point:
”F**k you all! Go the f**k home all of you and go to jail!”.
Why does he insult them?
These are the insults, the curses and the threats that by themselves are enough for the Bucharest City Hall, who oversees Malaxa Hospital and for the Ministry of Health, who carries the responsibility of the patient safety, to take a stand.
But more importantly why does manager Secureanu insult his employees?
What have they done until now and they refused to be doing lately?
The newspaper holds documents for tens of stupefying situations.
Today we publish about two of the companies.
A series dedicated to the December 1 Day
During the week of the Romanian National Day we get the chance to reflect upon this educational case.
A man offending in the most despicable ways women who are subordinated to him.
A hospital that has squandered huge funds, for almost a decade, often on things that never got to the clinic, but, according to sources, to the manager’s home or to his infinite group of protectors.
And, of course, a control system that closed the eye on Florin Secureanu, although the abuse level you are about to discover is shocking.
10,000
euros per month, during the last two years, represent only the cash withdrawals through the RYS company from the hospital, according to the payment lists held by Gazeta
Everything has unfolded in the silent mode as this was the only way it could have lasted for 9 years.
The lowest level
No matter how extensive your investigation experience might be as a journalist, and no matter how many things you might be aware are happening in Romania as a citizen, the Malaxa case goes beyond the wildest imagination.
You looK at what is going on in this hospital and you get the feeling that we reached the nadir of our compassion as a society, the lowest low.
We are so low that above us we get a glimpse of the Marianas Trench.
This is our starting point for respecting each other, working together and using money for the common good.
The hospital paid hundreds of thousands of euros to a company that was dissolved one year and a half ago!
Florin Secureanu was appointed manager at ”Malaxa” in May 2007.
He would do shifts, as a surgeon, at the Emergency University Hospital and would work as a masseur at the Olimpia Sporting Club.
”For as far as we know him, Secureanu has never operated, not then and not now, he dresses up as a surgeon only when he makes self-eulogizing movies. And he makes a lot of those!”, says another person from the hospital.
At the same time, RYS Force Company SRL was founded in 2008, in Iași.
A RYS shareholder is 33-year-old Marius Cătălin Ciobanu, from Botoșani.
The company’s activity first focused on ”plaster and gypsum”, then on ”car rental and leasing”, to which it further added mobile phone activities.
”We have known for years RYS as a dummy company of the manager”, claim sources from the hospital.
The employees provided the newspaper with invoices and all the payments the hospital has done towards RYS during the last five years! Every single one of them!
Invoices and receipts from RYS to Malaxa Hospital printed out in April 2016, when the company had been already dissolved by the court and could no longer unfold any kind of business activity.
The payments done by the hospital towards the phantom company started in 2011.
”Everyday, RYS ‘delivers’ toners and other supplies worth 950 lei and ”repairs” printers, worth additional 900 lei. The sums vary, according to how much money the manager asks for. Everything is made up!” - EMPLOYEE OF THE MALAXA HOSPITAL, SOURCE OF GAZETA
Has anyone ever seen a company billing two invoices a day towards a public institution, like a hospital, in order to be paid in cash? For five whole years!
Nobody has seen anything of the kind, as nobody has ever met Marius Cătălin Ciobanu, the owner of RYS Force.
The guy from Botoșani called Ciobanu has an address in a dorm from Iași. He appears as a shareholder also at Agricola Corni SRL.
The most part of the money has been withdrawn since 2014, up to the present when the hospital daily pays RYS 2,000-3,000 lei in cash!
1.6
million lei were invoiced by RYS towards ”Malaxa” since October 3, 2011 until November 21, 2016. The amount has been paid by the hospital to the last cent!
”The RYS stamp lays in the drawer at the hospital!”
“Why do you say that RYS Force is the company of the manager?”
“Through it the director daily withdraws between 2,000 and 3,000 lei in cash from the hospital’s cashier.”
“How?”
“The RYS stamp is held by the girls from the accounting department and the invoices are done by the IT guy who is the manager’s man. Let me explain in detail:
- Secureanu daily asks the accounting department for money, for his own personal needs, according to a weekly schedule.
- The IT guy working for the Malaxa Hospital prints the invoices as if they were issued by RYS.
- The “accounting” girls put the stamp on the ”supplier” invoice and withdraw cash from the ”beneficiary”, meaning the hospital.
- One of Secureanu handymen, because he has a lot of them, gets to the accounting department and the girls hand him the money in cash, as if someone from RYS would cash the money.”
”RYS is not a company in the yard but literally in the drawer of the Malaxa Hospital! The routine is well known: on Monday the manager’s cousin comes by, on Tuesday the manager’s lover comes by, on Wednesday the guy running the manager’s errands comes by and so forth” - MALAXA EMPLOYEE, SOURCE OF THE NEWSPAPER
“But how are such large amounts of money being justified? For what services?”
“(The man shrugs) Fiction. Toners and repairing printers. We use more toner than NASA. And every day we pay for repairing printers or computers. We daily pay two bills invoiced by RYS to the hospital. And, please note, that it is only one of the dummy companies through which Secureanu gets his money!
RYS ceased its activity on July 29, 2015, but continues ”to work” for Malaxa!
The surprise comes when you start to further investigate the company.
As RYS appears as deregistered. Not even the ”Malaxa” employees providing the data didn’t know that!
They operate a bogus company that became inoperative in July 2015!
And the confirmation comes from the insolvency company that was in charge with RYS liquidation.
The Homoranu Insolvency House: ”We couldn’t reach any representative of the company!”
”We didn’t know who was the administrator of RYS Force Company, we do not know him and we have never met him as no representative of this company could be reached”, says an official of the Homoranu Insolvency House in Iași.
“How did you get the file?”
“The Trade Registry requested in court the dissolution. RYS had not turned in the balance sheets for years. On July 29, 2015, the court declared the dissolution. We received the file as a result of random distribution. When we were appointed liquidators, we tried to reach the company’s representatives.”
“And?”
“We sent, in compliance with the law, notifications everywhere. To the administrator’s address, to a dorm somewhere in Iași. We didn’t get any answer. The company had only debts, nothing to cash, so we started the insolvency process according to a simplified procedure.
621
payments found by the newspaper to be done by the hospital paid towards RYS after the company had no longer the right to undergo any activity
“Could the company any longer provide services after July 29, 2015, when the court declared the dissolution?”
“No, out of the question! They could only retrieve older amounts or operations related to the patrimony.”
“But it could not repair the printer or the computer of a client for instance? Or sell toner?”
“Absolutely not! And all the financial operations that are undergone are done through the liquidator appointed by the court, meaning us. It was not the case, nothing was cashed. On November 18, 2016, the court called the deregistering of the company.
“Would you be surprised to find that RYS has been providing services, issuing invoices and cashing money during the last year and a half?”
“How could they cash if all the accounts were monitored by us?!”
“Cash. Money handed over. We have invoices and we have a record of every payment that was done towards them.”
“What you are describing is not under any circumstance legal!”
One of the tens of pages with the payments done by Malaxa towards RYS
Just an example
A look at the money withdrawn by RYS from the cashier of the Malaxa Hospital during October 31 – November 4, 2016:
October 31 1,000 RON
October 31 1,000 RON
November 1 1,400 RON
November 1 504 RON
November 2 995 RON
November 2 1,095 RON
November 3 1,023 RON
November 4 662 RON
November 4 1,010 RON
”We kept the silence out of fear”
A question must be asked.
“Why did you keep the silence until now?”
“You heard the recordings with the insults, right?! This is the terror we have to bear!”
“But what you are describing are frauds that are so ample and visible that it is hard to believe that no control authority noticed them!
“A few years ago somebody from the city hall with a tip-off came. It was an absurd purchase made for the manager with the hospital’s money, like many of the purchases he makes. They got 10,000 euros and the inspectors from the Bucharest City Hall left happy. They have remained on good terms, we are even doing all the medical tests for their relatives for free!”
“The Court of Accounts?”
“Oh, yes, we are undergoing right now a control from the Court of Accounts. The lady from the Court is really nice. We ran 4,000 lei tests for her. You get the point.“
“The question remains: why haven’t you spoken up?”
“Because we were scared! Secureanu is not just anybody. He has lots and lots of connections. How do you think he has lasted for so long? He was the resident of Sorin Oprescu and lots of money was given during the mandate of the former mayor. Mayor Onțanu supported him in return. He is connected to many political figures from several parties. Vasile Blaga and Alina Gorghiu both came to the launching of a children care center, made through his own personal foundation in Vâlcea! The Malaxa Hospital pays also for a big part of the expenses of that center! He is a PhD candidate at the Intelligence Services Academy, has connections in the Government, RAPPS (The Authority for the Administration of the State Protocol), you cannot even imagine how many favors a hospital manager in Romania has to do.”
”Some of the documents concern you directly. Please take a look at them and explain them”
Gazeta contacted Florin Secureanu yesterday morning and proposed a face-to-face meeting.
“Good day, mr. director, do you have a few minutes?”
“How can we help you, mr. journalist?”
“Please let’s meet today for a discussion.”
“About what?”
“Among others about the hospital’s budget. And about other things. We want to show you several documents. We understand that the city hall increases the budget starting next year. The way money is spent is important.”
“Yes, Mrs. Firea announced something on that matter. But unfortunately, I am out of town.
“No problem, we will be waiting for you, it is important to talk. Please give us a sign when you get close to the city.”
“Ok, ok, we will hear from each other on the phone.”
“We can meet wherever it is more convenient for you. The subject is urgent, we want to talk a little.”
“I don’t know if I’m so thrilled about that.”
“But you are the manager and there are matters related to the hospital.”
“You know, I am more of a humble nature.”
“It is not about publicity. We are not making any advertising for you. We want to show you some things and it is normal to discuss them.”
“I don’t have so many discussions with the gentlemen reporters, with the media.”
“We understand your reticence, but we have some inside things from the hospital which concern you. These matters concern you as a manager and are important.”
“I understand. And these subjects you want to talk about are in the ”good example” category or in the ”bad example” category? Because the reporters are usually chasing us.”
“We don’t believe you are scared of the press.”
“I want to leave the journalistic glory to my colleagues. I have colleagues who enjoy that.”
“But they don’t have your legal liability in this hospital! It is advisable for you to take the stand as some of the documents concern you directly. We want a face-to-face meeting so that you can see these documents and give accurate explanations to the public. We insist to have a face-to-face discussion for you, for the public and for the patients. So that you can see the documents.”
“Ok, we will hear from each other around 09:00-09:30 PM on the phone.”
“We can count on you for the meeting, right? We also want to video record if you agree.”
“Yes.”
5 things about Florin Secureanu’s profile
1. FLORIN SECUREANU LIVES IN A RENTED RAPPS APARTMENT IN DOWNTOWN BUCHAREST, BETWEEN EMINESCU STREET AND DACIA BLVD.
Alina Bica lived in the same building while she was running DIICOT (Directorate for Investigating Organized Crime and Terrorism).
Although he claimed to have left Bucharest, the car of Florin Secureanu was spotted yesterday in the garage. Several sources say he was home but he chose to keep silent.
2. THE MANAGER IS A PHD CANDIDATE IN THE 2014-2017 SERIES AT THE ”MIHAI VITEAZUL” ACADEMY OF SRI (Intelligence Services), AN INSTITUTION QUALIFIED BY THE SERVICES AS ”AN ESSENTIAL COMPONENT OF THE ROMANIAN INTELLIGENCE SERVICES”.
87
phD candidates the SRI Academy has this year
The civilians studying at the SRI Academy are considered part of a program ”created for the members of the intelligence and national security community in Romania and for all the people interested in higher understanding of the security field”.
3. THE MANAGER AT ”MALAXA” HAS BUDDIES WHO TAKE CARE OF HIS SAFETY.
”Secureanu checks his office for bugs! Some friends are coming over. He has done that less lately, but a few years ago they would show up very often”, says a source from the hospital.
Florin Secureanu has a badge for his car from the Chamber of Deputies
4. ON HIS OFF-ROAD SILVER MERCEDES THE MANAGER OF THE HOSPITAL wears a badge issued by the Chamber of Deputies.
5. AND LAST BUT NOT LEAST, TAKING INTO ACCOUNT THE AUDIO RECORDINGS AND THE UNFOLDING OF THE EVENTS: FLORIN SECUREANU HOLDS A LICENSE FOR CARRYING A GUN
”Secureanu has several weapons, a few years ago he would keep them at the hospital. And he permanently has a pistol on him” - SOURCE OF GAZETA FROM THE MALAXA HOSPITAL
The owner of the funeral company: ”We asked manager Secureanu how he was going to reimburse for the dead from the hospital’s funds and he told me it was none of my business!”
Gazeta took hold from inside the hospital of two funeral invoices reimbursed on behalf of Malaxa!
The first invoice was issued on January 4, 2016 and amounts to 4,850 lei.
The second is from February 4, 2016, and is worth 9,500 lei.
”The first body buried on the public hospital’s money was the husband of the former PD-L counselor Mariana Chiriș. She had two mandates as a local counselor in Bucharest”, says one of the sources.
”The second case of a funeral covered by the hospital is also for a person from the city hall, this time the Sector 2 City Hall. We are talking about an acquaintance of Cristina Popa, referent at the Urbanism Service and a connection of the manager”.
The newspaper tried to contact Cristina Popa yesterday, but despite the repeated calls, several people from the city hall, including the spokesman, stated she was impossible to find.”
”The hospital paid for the funeral cake, the coffin, the towels... everything!”
It doesn’t matter, the funeral services company recalls everything.
Sorin Dumitrescu is the owner of Elit Funerals SRL, a well-known shop in the Titan area. Malaxa paid this company, through bank transfer, for the funeral services of two persons.
Dumitrescu is open.
He does not deny anything.
“Are these two invoices issued by your company?”
“Yes, they are ours.”
“But are they paid by the Malaxa Hospital? Is it normal?”
“It looked weird to me too. It is the only case of funerals paid by a hospital.”
“How did that happen?”
“We initiated the partnership with Malaxa a year ago. The connection was made through an autopsy specialist from the hospital who recommended us. They called us first to perform the balming procedure. And after that they solicited to bury that man. The first case was in December 2015, a thin old man, dressed in an aviator uniform. We provided the usual package: funeral cake, funeral bread, coffin, velvet towels for the priest, charity packages… They were all paid by the hospital.”
“And when did they pay up?”
“Rather late, after a month and a half.”
”I went in person to the Malaxa Hospital, where I met manager Secureanu. We had tea. I gave them the 4,850 lei invoice and I asked: because it was bizarre” - SORIN DUMITRESCU, THE OWNER OF ELIT FUNERALS
“What did he reply?”
“Mr. Secureanu told me: ”It is none of your business”. The family of the dead person told me to issue an invoice on the hospital’s account. The second funeral, the one with the 9,500 lei invoice reimbursed through the bank also by Malaxa, took place two months later. Here I got my money faster. Three weeks after. I have no interest in lying. All I wanted was to get paid for the supplied services.”
”Mr. Secureanu only recommended the company. I paid myself in cash.”
The first dead person was a relative of Mariana Chiriș, two times PD-L counselor in the Bucharest ”Parliament” during 2008-2016.
A member of the Bucharest Health Commission, Chiriș was part of numerous administration boards of the hospitals subordinated to the City Hall. But not in Malaxa.”
She also took part in the jury for the competitions where many hospital managers got their jobs.
During the latest elections she was on the PNL list, but she did not get enough votes.
“Mrs. Chiriș, please forgive us, have you recently lost someone in the family?”
“Yes, my husband died on November 29, last year.”
“And did the Malaxa Hospital pay for the funeral?”
“No, of course not! Iti is true that I went to manager Secureanu, as my husband died at Malaxa and he recommended a company. That was all.
“You know, there is a 4,850 lei invoice charged to the hospital by the company! And witnesses at the company stating that you asked them to bill the hospital. Which happened.”
“My girls paid in cash. And I also gave my pension slip for the 2,400 lei funeral subvention. For the three weeks after ceremony and the other events we had nothing to do with the company.”
“The owner of the company recalls very well what happened. Was your husband dressed in the pilot uniform?”
“Yes, he was a great pilot. But we paid for everything, not the hospital.”
“So the girls can confirm that they paid 4,850 lei in cash?”
“No, I was the one to pay with cash.”
“Earlier you stated that they handed the money.”
“Not them, I was the one to pay in cash. They took care of submitting the pension slip.”
“The owner clearly states that Malaxa paid him through bank transfer and not you in cash.”
“That’s not true.”
A few minutes later.
“Good afternoon, you called us, Mrs. Chiriș.”
“Yes. I spoke with manager Secureanu. And I told him that my name cannot be involved! Make all the necessary investigations! What’s with these invoices?!
“And what did he tell you?”
“He told me ‘We will see, we will see’.”
“That’s all?”
“Yes. ‘We will see, we will see’. Then the phone call with manager Secureanu was interrupted. And when I called him again the phone was turned off.
The newspaper has incessantly called manager Florin Secureanu all day, according to our agreement.
We texted him.
The manager’s phone remained turned off. He chose not to speak anymore.
The truth is that when he talked, he didn’t go half way.
RO