If you have ever wondered what systematic fraud of #EU funds looks like in practice, just look at this case of billionair Lőrinc Mészáros from #Hungary. According to #Forbes, he is the richest person of in since 2018 + apparently more successful than Jeff Bezos. A thread /1

#Orbán 's proxy Lőrinc Mészáros' wealth grew by 3840%(!) within the last 4 years, with a net worth of more than 1.5 billion EUR. In the same time, the richest man in history, Amazon founder @JeffBezos, who's fortune has been skyrocketing, "only" almost tripled his net worth. /2

Mészáros is not only richest Hungarian but - COINCIDENCE - a childhood friend of #Orbán from Felcsut. He started out as a simple local gas fitter. But magically, when Orban took power in 2010, Mészáros fortune changed and his business has grown exponentially ever since!/3

Entrepreneurial talent? Rather not! Mészáros has made his wealth with sheer cronyism. His corporate empire is build on construction, energy and tourism, entirely based on state contracts and #EU funds, handed over to him by an administration, completely loyal to PM #Orbán /4

That's why the #EU finally needs to effectively defend its #budget against #corruption. Where the #ruleoflaw is under threat, we can never be sure that this is the case! If a member state violates #ruleoflaw, sanctions must follow! /END