Fico Describes Supreme Court's Ruling on Dusan K. as Atomic Bomb

Bratislava, 13 December (TASR) - The Supreme Court's ruling in the case involving former head of the Special Prosecutor's Office Dusan K. [name abbreviated due to legal reasons] is crucial and ground-breaking, and can be called an "atomic bomb", Prime Minister Robert Fico (Smer-SD) told a press conference on Saturday, describing Dusan K. as an innocent man. "The court issued a crucial decision. A decision that proved us right. Whether you like it or not, a decision that returns the case to ground zero has been made," said Fico, considering it good news for the rule of law. Fico also stressed that he had never been afraid to stand up for Dusan K. He also thanked lawmakers for overriding President Peter Pellegrini's veto of the law transforming the Whistleblowers Protection Office (UOO) into a new office. "The veto was overridden and the law will enter into force," Fico noted, adding that he views the changes in the Penal Code positively. Smer-SD sees the Supreme Court's ruling as confirmation that, between 2020 and 2023, there was an attempt to dismantle the rule of law, as well as the judicial and police systems, and that the actions of law enforcement bodies were unlawful. The party expects self-reflection from police officers, judges and prosecutors. According to Smer-SD, the ruling also proves that they were "right about everything and the truth is coming to light". They added it also shows that constitutional rights have been totally trampled upon. The Supreme Court ruled on Thursday (11 December) on the appeal filed by Justice Minister Boris Susko (Smer-SD) in the case of the accused former head of the Special Prosecutor's Office Dusan K., overturning the Supreme Court's 2022 ruling as well as the 2021 ruling of the Specialised Criminal Court. In the summer of 2024, the justice minister filed an appeal in the case of legally convicted former special prosecutor Dusan K. He also decided to suspend the execution of the prison sentence until the Supreme Court rules on the appeal. In May 2022, the Supreme Court lawfully sentenced Dusan K. to eight years in prison for accepting bribes and disclosing information from files. It also imposed a fine of €100,000 on him. jrg