Moldava Police Raid Investigation Reopened Due to ECHR Conclusions

Presov, 5 August (TASR) - The investigation into the police raid in a Roma settlement in Moldava nad Bodvou (Kosice region) in 2013 has been reopened due to the need to properly investigate suspicions of racial motives in line with the conclusions of the European Court of Human Rights (ECHR) and in order to "correct procedural errors", Michal Sovic, a spokesperson with the Regional Prosecutor's Office, which is overseeing the case, told TASR on Tuesday. He also confirmed that, according to resolution of 9 April this year, the investigator had previously discontinued the criminal proceedings by invoking a provision on the statute of limitations in the Criminal Procedure Code. The case is being investigated by the Internal Affairs Inspectorate (UIS), which stated that, based on instructions from the supervising prosecutor, the criminal proceedings were reopened on 22 July because the legal classification of the crime of abuse of public authority was supplemented with specific motives. On 19 June 2013, a police raid involved dozens of police officers at Roma settlement in Moldava nad Bodvou. Six Roma testified that they were beaten brutally and for no reason. However, an inspection carried out by the Interior Ministry, which investigated the raid at the time, found no violation of the law by the police. The Roma, originally considered to be victims, were subsequently charged with providing false testimony by the Prosecutor's Office. Viewing the entire proceedings as unfair, the Roma denied their guilt. Later on, the criminal prosecution was discontinued. In 2021, the Slovak government apologised for the manner in which law-enforcement bodies conducted the raid. In 2022, the ECHR announced a settlement between Slovakia and the group of Roma as the victims, with Slovakia committing itself to paying compensation of €110,000 including tax refunds as part of an out-of-court agreement. As regards the police officers involved, the Roma complained of abuses of power, ill-treatment and discrimination during the raid itself, as well as subsequently at a police station. Back in 2020, the ECHR decided that Slovakia acted in breach of the complainants' rights. jrg/df/ko