Former employees of Budapest parking companies reveal corrupt practices

Employees of two parking companies operating in Budapest have spoken with the press about corruption cases at their firms. Last month, a man formerly working as a parking attendant for Budapest Government Parking (BÖP) Kft told tabloid daily Blikk that he and his colleagues made Ft 60,000 to Ft 80,000 (roughly €260 to €340) daily by collecting money from drivers who in turn were allowed to park their cars for an unlimited time. On Saturday, a former controller of Centrum Parking System Kft told the paper that the company cheats thousands of drivers with manipulated photos and other methods to collect fines.

A former parking attendant at BÖP Kft József Duka said he had been fired from his job, because he decided to talk about the corruption cases publicly. Despite receiving threats, he gave a four-hour statement to police last week, writes inforadio.hu. He named those involved in the crime but did not name Imre Rusznák, leader of the company. The company has launched an internal investigation. Parking attendants involved in the case are complaining that the person coordinating the investigation is the same who operated the whole system and received Ft 800,000 in "contributions" weekly.

Duka earlier told Blikk that attendants who refused to hand over some of the money they collected to their supervisors were quickly fired. The man presented a list of 1,000 cars assorted according to streets, complete with license plate numbers and phone numbers of the owners. Drivers paid Ft 500 to Ft 1,000 to parking attendants. Duka said he had been collecting Ft 70,000 daily, but he and eight of his colleagues decided they no longer wanted to participate in the illegal business. Rusznák then said he had no knowledge of the crime.

On Saturday, a controller formerly working for Centrum, Tibor O., told Blikk that his former employer requires parking attendants to collect a certain amount in fines daily.

"If needed, we take a photo in a way that the valid ticket is not visible, and the handheld computers are often manipulated as well," the man said, adding that 50% of fines are issued as a result of cheating.

O. also said parking attendants who fail to collect the required amount in fines are fired, so they have no choice but to cheat. In addition, as at BÖP Kft, some of the fines are put away by the attendants. The difference is that at Centrum, corruption is not organized and everybody can keep what they collect.

"Parking meters are often broken on purpose which is good for the attendant and the repair person as well," O. added. "While the machine is broken, there are more cars parking without a ticket, and the machine is collecting Ft 1,500 to Ft 2,000 plus." O. said at least three of his colleagues were ready to talk about the crimes.

Blikk could not reach Centrum for comment.

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