Kubina: Court Rejects Sutaj Estok's Motion to Halt Distraint Proceedings

Banska Bystrica, 29 May (TASR) - District Court in Banska Bystrica rejected on Friday Interior Minister Matus Sutaj Estok's (Voice-SD) motion to halt the distraint proceedings in favour of the police investigators centred around Jan Curilla, police officers' legal representative Peter Kubina posted on social media. "This ruling will become final upon its delivery to the parties, i.e., within two weeks at the latest. Immediately thereafter, in accordance with the law, a distraint order will be issued to the bank, on the basis of which the funds frozen in the debtor's account will be paid to the distraint officer for the benefit of the creditors," he stated. Kubina further noted that the distraint proceedings will continue until the entire amount owed is fully recovered, including all late-payment interest and costs. "When we add up all the late-payment interest, legal costs, and distraint-proceedings costs, the debtor's efforts - though extensive in quantity but relatively empty in substance - to reverse the irreversible have so far made this process approximately €40,000 more expensive," added Kubina. Under a judgment of Bratislava IV City Court on 10 September 2025, Sutaj Estok must apologise to the police officers around Jan Curilla for comparing them to the crime boss and multiple murderer Mikulas Cernak, who has been lawfully convicted. He must also pay six police officers compensation totalling €90,000, as well as legal costs and late-payment interest. As Kubina announced on social media on 11 November, Sutaj Estok failed to collect his electronic mail, prompting the court to rule against him by default. The lawyer added at the time that funds in the minister's account had been frozen to cover the compensation. Sutaj Estok responded by stating on social media that he stood by his statements. Due to his workload, he said, he hardly uses the public administration digital platform. In his view, the court didn't take his arguments into account, and he also criticised the judge for not attempting to contact him by other means. am