Ex-chief of Police Eavesdropping Unit Jozef R. Given Suspended Sentence

Banska Bystrica, 3 November (TASR) - The Specialised Criminal Court (STS) in Banska Bystrica on Tuesday sentenced former head of Special Police Operations Office Jozef R. [name abbreviated due to legal reasons] to three years of imprisonment, suspended for five years. Jozef R. was found guilty of accepting bribes. Neither the defendant nor his lawyer attended the hearing for the verdict. The decision is not yet final, as it can be appealed against. The Specialised Criminal Court had previously issued a ruling discontinuing criminal proceedings in respect of the part of the indictment relating to the offence of setting up, masterminding and supporting a criminal group with a view to statutes of limitations. The prosecutor lodged an appeal against this ruling. Back in 2023, the Specialised Criminal Court found the defendant guilty of the offence of setting up, masterminding and supporting the Bratislava-based Sykorovci criminal gang - for which he was alleged to have passed on information from within the police in return for money - and of two counts of accepting bribes. Other police officers were also alleged to have been involved in these offences. The amount of the bribes was reportedly approximately €16,000 in one instance and €17,000 in the other. At the time, the Specialised Criminal Court sentenced him to a total of 11 years imprisonment. The Supreme Court quashed the verdict and referred the case back to the Specialised Criminal Court for it to be re-examined to the extent necessary and for a new decision to be made. am/df