public apology to Jewish organisations, declaring that by wearing the uniform he wanted to pay homage to Claus von Stauffenberg, a leading member of the failed plot to kill Adolf Hitler during World War II. Radu Mazăre in the year 2003 introduced the "tax for increasing the degree of peace and security in carrying out economic activities in Constanța, Mamaia and Sat Vacanţa" (taxa pentru creșterea gradului de liniște și siguranță în derularea activităților economice în Constanța, Mamaia și Sat Vacanță). This tax was attacked and canceled by the prefect of Constanța county Dănuț Culețu in 2006. Although this tax was considered abusive, it was reintroduced in disagreement with 31337 debtors from Constanta, in 2009. Among the population, this tax was also called: "Mazăre's Protection tax" or ”The Al Capone Tax”. The tax remained uncontested until 2015, when the president of the ACIA, civic activist Andrei Popescu, initiated a campaign to collect signatures to end this abuse. The campaign had a real support from the people of Constanta, gathering over 7,000 signatories. In early 2015, Mazăre was placed under indictment and investigated for corruption-related offenses by the National Anticorruption Directorate. In July 2017, after nine years of trial, Mazăre was convicted and given a three-year suspended sentence for the illegal sales. At the end of 2017, Mazăre fled to Madagascar, where he owns a holiday resort, asking for the right of asylum. In May 2018, Mazăre received a six and a half-year prison sentence for abuse of power in a case related to the sale of a 15,000 sqm-plot of land in the Mamaia resort, subject to appeal. Subsequently, on 8 February 2019, Mazăre was handed a final 9-year imprisonment sentence in the Mamaia affair. In May 2019 he was repatriated to Romania under an international warrant, to serve 9 years in prison. See also List of corruption scandals in Romania Footnotes 1968 births Living people Mayors of places in Romania Members of the Chamber of Deputies (Romania) Democratic Party (Romania) politicians Social Democratic Party (Romania) politicians Politicians from Bucharest Romanian white-collar criminals People from Constanța People extradited to Romania