Transcripts from Elena Lasconi’s statement, given before the DIICOT prosecutors in the fake photos file in which Nicușor Dan, Florian Coldea and Victor Ponta appear, were published exclusively by Cotidianul. According to the documents obtained by the cited publication, the former head of USR explains how she came into possession of the images with the three and how they ended up being disseminated on Facebook, after consulting with Ioana Răduca and Liviu Popescu, her advisors from that time.
Elena Lasconi told DIICOT that the photos reached the department headed by Ioana Răduca and through the lawyer she will submit the names of the other people who were in charge of communication to the file.
The role of the communication team in the publication of fake pictures
“After receiving the photos, I talked to Ioana Răduca and Liviu Popescu, to whom I told them about receiving the email and showed them the photos received. All the staff from the communication department had access to part of my email accounts and social media accounts.
After the discussions we had with Ioana Răduca and Liviu Popescu, we agreed together to make these photos public, accompanied by a question as neutral and pertinent as possible, with the idea of clarifying whether these photos are real or not.
On the day I had the discussion with the two, the respective photos were published by the communication department headed by Ioana Răduca, the final text being probably made by Ioana Răduca or other people from the communication department”.
Lasconi does not rule out that the pictures were sent by people from Nicușor Dan’s entourage
“From my point of view, I consider that I was misled, as the consequences, from a political point of view, were the most dramatic for me and they obviously favored the current President of Romania, Nicușor Dan.
I don’t have any concrete information to support this theory, there was some talk in the public space and on TV shows that some photos were known to exist.
I appreciate that it is possible that people from Nicușor Dan’s political entourage sent me these photos, considering that he had the most to gain as a result of their publication, knowing the mechanisms of the electoral campaign, when this kind of information is published. I show the fact that, having been mentioned the names of the four suspects in question, I do not know any names and I do not think that I know any of them”, it is stated in Elena Lasconi’s statement consulted by Cotidianul.
Who are Ioana Răducă and Liviu Popescu
Ioana Răduca took care of USR’s communication during the period when the head of the party was Elena Lasconi. She was even the spokeswoman of the party. In November 2025, Răduca was appointed chief of staff of the then Minister of Economy, Radu Miruță. Later, his name also appears on the Board of Directors of Orange.
Liviu Popescu is a former USR consultant. Currently, he is the right hand of the Government spokesperson, Ioana Dogioiu. Popescu was acting general director of the Romanian Broadcasting Society and former editor-in-chief of TVR news.
Who are the people involved in the Ponta-Nicușor Dan-Coldea scene
DIICOT prosecutors held several hearings in the scandal of the photos published by Elena Lasconi in 2025, 3 days before the first round of the presidential elections. The USR candidate claimed that Nicușor Dan and Victor Ponta met with the former first deputy of the SRI, Florian Coldea, near Bucharest.
The prosecutors believe that the photos that were published by Elena Lasconi, in which they allegedly showed the candidates Nicușor Dan and Victor Ponta meeting with the former first deputy of the SRI, Florian Coldea, near Bucharest, were taken by one of the teams that worked on the 2025 campaign, with several people involved in the taking of the photos “masked”they took the photos, but they also rented the location in Tunari, Ilfov, writes Mediafax.
According to some judicial sources, the following would be involved in the scandal of the campaign photos:
– Bicuti Andrei-Gabriel, the founder and administrator of Training Private Grup SRL, a business support service company, established in 2023
– Bicuti Gheorghe-Liviu, founder of Creative & Innovative Management SRL, a company established in 2016, also for business support services
– Mihai Cojocaru, from CStudio Ro Film Production SRL, one of the operators who worked in the campaign with the president Nicușor Dan, friend of Andrei Bicuti and collaborator of the company SC Training Private Group SRL, belonging to Andrei Bicuti;
Ponta, heard in the file of photos from the 2025 presidential campaign: “DIICOT detected those who participated in the falsification of the photos”
– Dobre Marius-Adrian, collaborator of the company SC Training Private Group SRL, belonging to Andrei Bicuti;
– Bratu Răzvan-Florin;
– Năstăsoiu Alexandru-Cristian;
– Pop Alex-Gabriel, operator.
“The people who played the three characters were identified and interviewed, respectively:
- Bratu Răzvan-Florin (Dan Nicușor – Daniel),
- Năstăsoiu Alexandru-Cristian, (Victor Ponta)
- Cojocaru Marian, (Coldea Mihail – Florian)”
Ponta, already heard in the file
Former Prime Minister Victor Ponta announced on Friday, April 3, on Facebook, that he was heard at DIICOT, as an injured party, in a case concerning the controversial photos that appeared in the 2025 presidential campaign. The case is related to the images presented last year by Elena Lasconi, in which Victor Ponta, Nicușor Dan and Florian Coldea appeared, in an alleged meeting
The former prime minister says that investigators have made significant progress in this case.
“DIICOT detected those who participated in the falsification of the pictures (…) They have four suspects: three young and one older”, declared Ponta, specifying that he did not know them, but that he was waiting to establish who would have been behind the operation.
In a message published on Facebook, he claimed that the images would have influenced the outcome of the elections and asked for clarification on the people who would have financed and organized the action.
“It’s not just about falsified pictures, I’m waiting for the four to say who hired them, who paid them. We know who benefited from this. Who are the ones who made a fool of Madame Lasconi. Romania’s history has changed and I want to find out what happened there.” the former prime minister also said in the video.
Lasconi’s pictures
On May 1, 2025, in the last days of the campaign and 3 days before the first round of presidential voting, Elena Lasconi, USR candidate, published four separate photos on Facebook. She claimed that they capture an alleged secret meeting that would have taken place in December 2024 between: Nicușor Dan, the General Mayor of the Capital, Victor Ponta, former prime minister and presidential candidate, and Florian Coldea, the former first deputy of the SRI.
DIICOT identified the actors involved in the scandal of fake photos published by Lasconi: who directed the meeting
Lasconi suggested that the three were coming out of the same house, demanding public explanations about their connections. The purpose of the post was to associate the image of Nicușor Dan with controversial figures (“the system”), trying to influence the choices of the right-wing electorate.
The response of those targeted was immediate: Nicușor Dan and Victor Ponta denied any meeting, qualifying the images as “gross fakes” and “poorly executed fakes”.
At the time, image experts pointed to “obvious evidence” of digital manipulation, suggesting that the figures (particularly that of Nicușor Dan) had been artificially inserted into the frames.
Both Nicușor Dan and Victor Ponta filed criminal complaints against Elena Lasconi for forgery and fraud.
On May 2, 2025, Nicusor Dan announced that he filed a complaint against Elena Lasconi for alteration of computer content, computer forgery and deception, after she published several images suggesting that she had met with the former first deputy from SRI Florian Coldea.
“The first of the crimes is under the special competence of DIICOT and that is why I came to DIICOT: alteration of computer content”Dan said, noting that he also requested an IT technical expertise.
“The question is who does this mess help: the system led by Marcel Ciolacu and its interface Crin Antonescu”, said Nicușor Dan before the Organized Crime and Terrorism Investigation Directorate (DIICOT).
Buletin de București later discovered that the said location, where the photos were taken, was in Tunari commune, Ilfov, and was called Vila 13. The house was available for rent on online platforms such as Airbnb and Booking.
