Bucharest Life » Anamaria Straus

Bucharest Life gets it right for once

Craig Turp — Thu, 02 Jul 2009 11:31:17 +0000

Back in January we made a few predictions for the coming year. Not all of them have so far been entirely accurate (though the year is still young), but today, one proved to be spot on.

We said that Anamaria Straus, a wealthy business woman who killed a young student, Tatiana Duplei, on Sos. Kiseleff last year (Straus did not stop at a pedestrian crossing) would not serve a prison sentence.

This morning she was sentenced to two years in prison. Suspended, of course. She also has to pay €135,000 to the student’s family, the kind of money we would assume wealthy people like Straus no doubt have in change down the back of the sofa. She will also, poor thing, have to attend some road safety classes.

The Romanian justice system. Dontcha just love it?

Full story here.

Horse runs away, Bucharest City Council closes stable door

Craig Turp — Tue, 03 Feb 2009 06:30:00 +0000

Bucharest City Council yesterday unveiled two new sets of traffic lights on Soseaua Kiseleff, the street that has become something of a mad mile in recent times, with two young girls being killed by reckless drivers here in less than a year. The latest death came on Saturday, when a speeding Austrian diplomat killed a 23 year old girl while she was on a pedestrian crossing. This comes after the now infamous incident almost a year ago (and in exactly the same place) when the wealthy and well-connected business woman Anamaria Straus killed a young student.

Much has been made over the weekend of the diplomatic immunity enjoyed by the Austrian diplomat involved in Saturday’s accident. Though questioned by police immediately after the accident he cannot be charged unless the Austrian authorities withdraw his diplomatic status. In all likeliness he will be charged in Austria. In a similar case four years ago a Romanian musician, Teo Peter, was killed by US marine, drunk, and who likewise enjoyed diplomatic immunity. The marine was later tried for manslaughter in the US, but was cleared.

With many Romanians now fearing history will repeat itself, some have called for the authorities to simply charge and arrest the Austrian diplomat, ignoring diplomatic protocol.

All well and good. Yet what about Straus? A year on she has yet to be tried for any offence, and walks free. Though not a diplomat she clearly has some kind of immunity…

So why does nobody make a fuss about revoking her special status?

The Year Ahead

Craig Turp — Tue, 06 Jan 2009 13:00:00 +0000

Bucharest Life’s predictions for 2009.

Property prices will fall through the floor. Expect a return to 2002-2003 prices for older apartments: two-bedrooms on B-dul Unirii will be yours for around €150,000 (tops) by year’s end. New developments will be abandoned, half complete, and those which do get finished will remain empty. Lots of estate agents will go bust.

The leu will also fall through the floor. 4.06 lei to the Euro? Just the beginning. If you’re holding lei, sell it now.

Arguments over the PSD’s refusal to allow Traian Basescu to run unopposed by a PSD candidate for reelection as president in November will lead to the break up of the government (if, indeed, it lasts that long). Sorin Oprescu will end up running for president in November’s election, and will make the second round, where he will be annihilated by Basescu.

Not one kilometre of new motorway will be completed and opened to the public.

Baneasa Airport will be declared ‘unfit for purpose’ and closed. Tarom will be sold or will go bust.

Unirea Urziceni will be denied the Romanian football championship by some very strange refereeing decisions. Dinamo will instead win.

Anamaria Straus (killer of a student in an infamous car accident on Sos. Kiseleff last year) will not go to prison.

Straus (that’s her, left, in the sunglasses) is simply too rich and too well connected for the law to be applied as it probably would be to others. If she does go down then maybe, just maybe, things might have taken a turn for the better in this city. We wait for justice to follow its natural course (she could be innocent!)

The Mysterious Disappearing Case of the Kisellef Killer

Craig Turp — Mon, 13 Oct 2008 10:57:00 +0000

Earlier this year Ana Maria Strauss, driving a big Audi, killed a young student who had made the mistake of trying to cross a busy Bucharest road on a zebra crossing.

Now, in the first place it should be recognised that the student was being a bit dumb. I mean, everyone knows that people driving big Audis in Bucharest have priority. You really can’t expect them to slow down and stop for pedestrians. These are busy, important people.

Anyway, in the immediate aftermath of this tragedy there was a massive amount of press coverage on the subject, until someone discovered that Strauss was very well connected, and rich.

Since then, nothing.

Not a thing.

Has Strauss even been charged? I think we should be told.