Hungarian extremist sentenced to 13 years in prison

A Budapest court has sentenced in a non-binding ruling extremist György Budaházy to 13 years in prison for carrying out terrorist activity almost a decade ago. He and six of his accomplices, who were sentenced to around ten years in prison each, were placed under house arrest Tuesday afternoon.

The Hungarian news agency MTI reports that another three people, who were sentenced to around seven years each, are prohibited from leaving their homes.

According to the charges, Budaházy set up a terrorist organisation called the Hungarian Arrows to carry out attacks against lawmakers of the then ruling Socialist-Free Democrat alliance between 2007 and 2009.

Budaházy and his accomplices were also charged with throwing petrol bombs at the homes of Socialist and Free Democrat politicians and their parties’ headquarters as well as throwing Molotov cocktails at gay bars and outlets, such as a ticket office in Budapest’s 13th district.

Budaházy’s group is also thought to have been behind the beating up of a former Socialist politician turned TV personality Sándor Csintalan. Budaházy was arrested in June 2009 and was kept in pre-trial detention until September 2011 when the court ordered his house arrest. The court lifted the order in June 2014.

Budaházy’s name also surfaced in connection with a blockade of Elisabeth Bridge in protest against the Socialist-Free Democrat victory in the 2002 general elections.