Hungarian authorities have detained the brother of Viktor Orbán as part of a people-smuggling investigation, the prime minister, Péter Magyar, has said.
The Hungarian anti-graft body, the national asset protection and recovery office (NVVH), said in a statement it and police had detained four people and searched homes in Budapest and Pest county.
“Three ex-ministers of Orbán are already in custody,” Magyar said in Berlin, where he was giving a speech. “Already his brother today went to custody,” he added, referring to the former prime minister’s sibling, Aron, 49.
Writing on Facebook, Orbán dismissed his brother’s detention as a case of political revenge. “In this dirty game, the aim is the elimination of the political opponent and the establishment of a one-party system. I am the target, my younger brother is just a tool,” the former prime minister wrote.
The NVVH was set up by Magyar to investigate allegations of corruption during Orbán’s 16-year rule. The latter has denied the claims.
Magyar ousted Orbán in an April election and the NVVH is central to his government’s anti-graft campaign which he…