Article by Daniel Grigore – Published Tuesday, 07 April 2026, 12:04 / Updated Tuesday, 07 April 2026 12:05
Former football player Gabriel Tamaș (42 years old) lost the process of attacking the classification of the criminal file in which he claimed the recording and “leaking” in the press of the phone conversation he had on October 11, 2022 with the coach of Petrol at the time, Nae Constantin.
We recall the milestones of the case:
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On October 9, 2022, Petrolul, with Gabi Tamaș as starter, lost 0-2 in a duel with FCSB. Two days away, the former central defender called coach Nae Constantin, in front of him with several colleagues.
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In the telephone conversation, Tamaș insulted the supporters of Petrol (“I f*** them”), the president at the time, Costel Lazăr (“for me, this Costel Că***, Lazăr or whatever he calls him, he's a boschetar”), and complained, using suburban language, that only “7-8 players” from the team responded to his invitation to a group meal.
- The recording of the conversation reached the public space, Tamaș accusing the interlocutor, Nae Constantin, of “leaking” it to the press. The coach supported that he gave the recording only “to the leaders of the galleries”, on the grounds that they were asking questions about the breakup with Tamaș. “Furthermore, how it ended up online, I don't know,” Nae Constantin said, but that didn't save him from the process.
- Tamaș filed a criminal complaint against Nae Constantin “and all the people who are guilty of recording and broadcasting in the mass media, without the right and without the consent of the undersigned, a private telephone conversation”.
- In 2024, the Prosecutor's Office attached to the Brașov Court decided not to prosecute Nae Constantin, thus closing the case.
Tamaș addressed the Brașov Court, where he appealed the decision to close the file.
Gabriel Tamaș, final defeat in the trial with Nae Constantin: he could not reopen the criminal case
He also lost in this endeavor, because on March 27 came the final decision rejecting the former footballer's complaint. Tamaș was obliged to pay the modest amount of 200 lei, under the heading of court costs.
The decision was first presented by cancan.ro.
“Recording your own phone conversation has no criminal significance”
But why was the criminal complaint initially filed by Tamaș dismissed? The magistrates ruled that Nae Constantin's deed does not fall within the criminal sphere.
“The recording by the interlocutor of his own telephone conversation with the injured person it has no criminal significance, because it cannot be claimed that the perpetrator affected the confidentiality of the telephone conversation by recording it, as long as he took part in the conversation.
Regardless of the existence or non-existence of the interlocutor's consent regarding the recording of the conversation, the recording of the telephone communication without the interlocutor's consent does not fall within the scope of the criminal offense”, the resolution states, according to golazo.ro.
AUDIO: the telephone conversation between Gabi Tamaș and Nae Constantin
