Hungary files espionage charges against investigative journalist Szabolcs Panyi

Berlin, April 1, 2026—The Committee to Protect Journalists calls on Hungarian authorities to immediately drop all espionage charges against investigative journalist Szabolcs Panyi, and ensure that journalists can cover national security issues without intimidation or threats of imprisonment.

On March 26, Gergely Gulyás, chief of staff to Prime Minister Viktor Orbán, announced that the government had filed criminal charges against Panyi, a prominent reporter for investigative outlets Direkt36 and VSquare, on suspicion of spying  “in coordination with a foreign country,” after his revelations about Russian influence operations ahead of the country’s parliamentary elections, scheduled for April 12. Gulyás alleged that Panyi had helped intercept communications between Hungarian Foreign Minister Péter Szíjjártó and Russian officials. According to local media, the National Bureau of Investigation started a preliminary investigation on April 1, and have 30 days to collect further data and decide whether to launch a criminal investigation or reject the charges.

“Trying to intimidate journalist Szabolcs Panyi — rather than addressing the substance of his revelations — suggests that the government has something to hide,” said Attila Mong, CPJ’s Europe representative. “Panyi’s reporting on Russian influence operations in Hungary is clearly of huge public interest. This unprecedented attack on press freedom in an EU member state is a classic authoritarian tactic, straight out of Russian President Vladimir Putin’s playbook. It sends a chilling signal to all journalists in Hungary and shows that the government is prepared to go to great lengths to silence independent media ahead of April’s parliamentary elections.”

Panyi, who was surveilled with Pegasus spyware in 2021, denied the accusations, condemning what he described as a coordinated smear campaign and targeted surveillance aimed at discrediting his reporting, and compared the government’s tactics to those seen in “Putin’s Russia.”

Following the charges filed by the government, prosecutors will decide whether to formally indict the reporter on espionage, which carries a maximum sentence of eight years, although it is up to 15 if the spying involves secrets “classified as strictly confidential.” In an email to CPJ, the press department of Hungary’s Supreme Prosecutor’s Office confirmed that the government’s criminal complaint “for espionage and related crimes” has been received and is under review.

The state-run Sovereignty Protection Office published a statement labeling Panyi as someone who is “financed and directed by the European Commission and U.S. Democratic-party linked backers.” Gulyás claimed Panyi had spied against his country and called his journalism a “cover.”

CPJ emailed government spokesperson Zoltán Kovács for comment but did not receive a reply.