Supreme Court Upholds Prison Sentence for Crime Boss

Bratislava, 27 August (TASR) - The Supreme Court upheld a prison sentence of 14 years and six months handed down by the Specialised Criminal Court (STS) in May to former boss of Bratislava-based gang Juraj 'Pito' O. [name abbreviated due to legal reasons] in a retrial on Wednesday, TASR reported on the same day. The verdict, which was delivered in Juraj O.'s absence, is final and concerned only the punishment, which was cancelled by STS when it allowed the retrial in March. Juraj O. was still found guilty of affiliation with an organised criminal group and other crimes. In its justification, the Supreme Court explained that the punishment is appropriate, and it agreed with STS's decision to refrain from an asset forfeiture penalty, confirming that there was no reason to impose this. In March, STS allowed the retrial by accommodating a proposal submitted by Juraj O. The retrial concerned a case in which 'Pito' received a 16-year sentence in 2014 over his affiliation with an organised criminal group and other crimes, which meant that Juraj O. was still found guilty, but without a punishment. Because of this, the court remanded him in custody in order to prevent him from fleeing or continuing his criminal activities. In the retrial, STS subsequently imposed a combined prison sentence of 14 years and six months in a medium-security prison, along with two years of parole. jrg/df