The tomb of Ilie Balaci, vandalized! “The forensic police came. There was blood on the cross”
Article by Cosmin Nistor – Published Thursday, March 19, 2026, 6:30 p.m. / Updated Thursday, March 19, 2026, 7:11 p.m.
The grave of the great former football player from Olt, Ilie Balaci, in the Sineasca cemetery, was vandalized. The incident happened on Wednesday evening, and the authorities opened an investigation.
Ilie Balaci, symbol of Craiova Maxima, died in October 2018, at the age of 62, following a stroke.
PHOTO. Ilie Balaci's grave was vandalized
Lorena Balaci, the daughter of Ilie Balaci, gave disturbing details about what happened and explained how the author tried to destroy the photo of the cross.
“Someone came, tried to tear that picture of him from the cross. The criminal police came, very professional people. They took pictures. He tried to remove the picture from the grave, it was put in a bottle. The glass broke, the picture was embedded in the glass, you can't just take it out. He cut it, there were traces of blood on the cross, on the floor.
Ilie Balaci's grave was vandalized // Photo source: Antena Sport
They circled the area, took pictures, moved very quickly. The head of cemeteries has already ordered another picture. Only in Bucharest is it done, at a company. I think someone wanted to take a souvenir. The person was chosen with a criminal record. There are two cameras that hit the tomb very well, both from the front and from the back.
Dad's grave was vandalized. In this way, I want to thank them (not the authorities) for their fairness and professionalism. We live in a crazy worldLorena Balaci declared, according to as.ro.
INVESTIGATIONS UNDER THE ASPECT OF THE COMMITMENT OF THE CRIME OF GRAVE DEFAMATION
Today, around 10:20 a.m., the policemen of the Craiova Police Department 5 were alerted by the company that provides security services for the Sineasca Cemetery, in Craiova, regarding the fact that unknown persons allegedly destroyed, by breaking and entering, a memorial photo fixed on a gravestone, causing a damage of approximately 300 lei.
In the case, the police have drawn up a criminal file under the aspect of committing the crime of desecration of graves, and investigations are continuing to establish the exact circumstances in which the event took place, identify the perpetrators and take legal measures. Upon completion of the investigations, a solution will be proposed by the competent prosecutor's office.– the statement from the Craiova Police
Who was Ilie Balaci?
As a player, Ilie Balaci made his debut in League 1 at only 16 years, 11 months and 5 days and evolved throughout his career at Craiova University, FC Olt and Dinamo.
He ticked off 347 matches in the first echelon, in which he scored 84 goals, and won three championship titles, as well as four Romanian Cups. At the international level, he wore the Romanian national team shirt for the first time at 17 years, 6 months and 10 days, managing to score 8 times in 65 selections.
As a coach, he trained numerous teams from the country and abroad, including Pandurii, Drobeta Turnu-Severin, Club Africain, Olympique Casablanca, Al Shabab, Al Nassr, Al Hilal, U Craiova, Al Ain, Al Sadd, Al Ahli, Al Arabi, Kazma, Raja Casablanca, Al Nahda, Al Hilal Omdurman and Al Suwaiq.
Throughout his career as a technician, he won no less than 21 trophies in Africa and Asia, the most important being the African Champions Cup. The last experience on the technical bench was in 2017, in Oman, at Al Suwaiq.
