Zsolt Bede, a journalist with the pro-Fidesz outlet Vadhajtások, says police raided his home and seized electronic devices belonging to both him and his child. Bede is now describing the case as “political intimidation.”
On a post on X, he documented how eight investigators first showed up to his 75-year-old father’s house and intimidated him. A week passed by, and then the police targeted Bede in a raid.
“They did not present any documents and did not explain what they were looking for. I was not informed of the allegations against me. To this day, I have not been provided with any of the official case documents.
They conducted a search of my home while my 16-year-old son was with me. They traumatized him as well. I was not allowed to call my lawyer, and my son was not allowed to speak with his mother. Moreover, he was not permitted to leave for an important international scout football event he was supposed to attend. He was unlawfully detained.
The authorities seized my phones and laptop, and then they confiscated my son’s devices as well. He has absolutely nothing to do with politics.”
My name is Zsolt Bede. I am a journalist, influencer, and patriotic activist who supports Orbán and Fidesz.
A week ago, eight investigators showed up at the home of my 75-year-old father. They said nothing, provided no contact information, and simply appeared there to intimidate… pic.twitter.com/4KwIvm2gT6
— Bede Zsolt (@Bede_Zsolti) June 19, 2026
The Vadhajtások employee said officers took 13 devices, including his laptop and phone, along with older devices that are now broken. He added that his child was also barred from leaving and had a laptop and phone confiscated by police. According to Bede, the detectives did not explain why they were carrying out the search.
“The entire residential complex watched as if I were some kind of terrorist while eight police officers searched the vehicle,” he wrote, adding: “The next day, I was required to report to the police headquarters for a five-and-a-half-hour interrogation. The official record stated that I had failed to comply with the authorities, which is a lie. I was fully cooperative.”
The anti-Orban Index media outlet indicated the raid may be connected to media reports that tied theologian Rita Perintfalvi to a pornography film in Vienna. She says that she never appeared in the film and there is no record of her appearing in the film. She said that she believes the investigation was launched over alleged offenses committed against her.
“On June 8, I received a court order in connection with the ongoing private criminal case against Zsolt Bede, which stated that the court had ordered the police to ‘search, seize, examine, and analyze,'” Perintfalvi told the newspaper. “In addition, based on my public complaint, a police investigation is also underway against the operator of Vadhajtások.”
In the past, Viktor Orbán once said of Vadhajtások that, alongside Nemzeti Sport (National Sport), it was his second daily must-read media outlet.
Perintfalvi said she believes the two cases have now converged, which is why police went to Bede’s apartment. Although she has not yet received official confirmation, she said she would later request access to inspect the police data. “I am almost certain that this police operation was carried out on suspicion of crimes committed against me,” she added.
However, if this were true, the house raid against Bede is unusual in a libel case. Newspapers and journalists are often sued in the West for false or misleading claims, but it usually involves a civil suit and not a massive house search.
“These are the times that have arrived in Hungary under Péter Magyar,” warned Bede.
So far, there is no official confirmation about why the house search was conducted.
