DNA detains two university staff and two students over medical exam bribes in Constanța
The National Anticorruption Directorate detained two university assistants and two students on 5 September 2026 for allegedly collecting over €37,100 to pass students in anatomy retake exams.
Anti-corruption detentions at Ovidius University
Romanian anti-corruption prosecutors ordered the 24-hour detention of two university faculty members and two students from the Faculty of Medicine at Ovidius University in Constanța on 5 September 2026. The Constanța Territorial Service of the National Anticorruption Directorate initiated formal criminal proceedings against university assistant Raluca Talpeș on charges of taking bribes in a continuous form, covering 15 material acts. University assistant Batuhan Omeroglu and two female medical students, identified in judicial filings by the initials I.A. and Z.I.D., were detained on charges of complicity in bribe-taking across the identical 15 material acts. Prosecutors submitted a formal motion to the Constanța Tribunal seeking 30-day pre-trial detention for all four suspects.
- First anatomy retake examination session opens at Ovidius University
- Second anatomy retake examination session begins
- Judicial officers conduct searches across 26 locations in Constanța
- DNA detains four suspects and submits 30-day arrest request to court
Anatomy examination fraud and tariff system
Judicial case files indicate that the corruption scheme operated between May and September 2026, targeting the Anatomy department during the 2026 academic year. Raluca Talpeș held official duties evaluating and grading students in anatomy and sat directly on the department examination board. Prosecutors alleged that Batuhan Omeroglu, I.A., and Z.I.D. acted as intermediaries by identifying at least 15 students registered for retake exams who agreed to pay cash in exchange for guaranteed passing marks. The transactions specifically covered two retake sessions scheduled from 6 July to 12 July 2026 and from 1 September to 6 September 2026.
The price scale established by the group set fixed rates of 600 euros for passing a colloquium and up to 2,500 euros for passing a full anatomy examination per student. The three intermediaries collected the cash directly from enrolled candidates, withheld individual commissions for coordinating the transactions, and delivered the remainder to the grading assistant. In total, anti-corruption investigators calculated that the illicit financial benefits generated through the operation exceeded 37,100 euros.
- Colloquium fee
- 600 EUR
- Exam fee (maximum)
- 2500 EUR
Evidence seizures and expanding proceedings
A day before the detentions, judicial officers executed search warrants across 26 distinct locations on 4 September 2026 throughout the city and county of Constanța. Law enforcement agents inspected private residences, private medical practices, university facilities at Ovidius University, and a local medical institution. During the searches, investigators discovered and seized various sums of cash that the suspects could not legally account for. Representatives of Ovidius University confirmed that the institution is cooperating with law enforcement throughout the ongoing judicial inquiry.
The anti-corruption agency formally presented the indictment details to the four detainees prior to their scheduled hearing before the Constanța Tribunal.
The defendants were informed of their procedural status and the criminal charges, in accordance with the provisions of Article 309 of the Criminal Procedure Code. In this case, acts of criminal prosecution are also being carried out against other individuals.
Prosecutors stated that procedural actions continue to determine whether additional faculty members, intermediaries, or students participated in the bribery ring.
