Bašternák will go to prison and lose his property

The court issued a stricter sentence for the controversial businessman guilty of tax fraud.

Ladislav Bašternák at court in November 2018.Ladislav Bašternák at court in November 2018. (Source: SME)

Businessman Ladislav Bašternák was not successful in his appeal against a verdict issued by the district court in Bratislava last November for tax and insurance fraud and evasion.

Conversely, the Bratislava Regional Court issued a stricter verdict. Bašternák will not only spend five years in prison and be prohibited from carrying out any business activities for five years, but his property will be forfeited, the Sme daily reported.

SkryťTurn off ads
Article continues after video advertisement
SkryťTurn off ads
Article continues after video advertisement

This means that the last flat he owns, in which ex-PM and Smer chair Robert Fico lives, will become property of the state, as the Denník N daily wrote.

SkryťTurn off ads

The verdict is valid, even though Bašternák’s lawyer Peter Filip did not rule out submitting a special appeal that would be assessed by the Supreme Court.

Most of the property has new owners

Bašternák did not attend the court proceeding in person, but was represented by Filip. If the businessman had been present, he would probably have already been escorted to prison.

Read also: Who is Bašternák and why do they call him "our man"? Read more 

The court will now issue an order to escort Bašternák to custody. This means that if he does not come himself, the police will accompany him to prison, Sme wrote.

“He is in Bratislava and I’m sure he will start serving his sentence,” Filip said, as quoted by Sme. “He has no other choice.”

Neither Filip nor the prosecutor of the Special Prosecutor’s Office, Marián Varga, directly commented on the forfeiture of the flat in the Bonaparte residential complex. However, since Varga had not ordered securing the property beforehand, Bašternák managed to make it over to other people, Sme wrote.

SkryťTurn off ads

“There were no legal reasons,” Varga explained, as quoted by Sme.

Even though the prosecutor proposed the property to be forfeited last November, the court did not see a reason for such actions.

What is the case about?

Bašternák bought seven flats for €12 million, via the BL-202 firm in 2012, in Bratislava’s Five Star Residence apartment complex, as the investigation showed.

Read also: President Kiska made a mistake with his firm KTAG's taxes. How? Read more 

Their actual value was reportedly much lower. Bašternák, according to an investigator, thus claimed VAT refunds of €2 million without reason.

As soon as he was accused, he applied the active repentance principle, paying the sum back to the state. Despite this, a criminal complaint was filed against him.

Top stories

Stock image.

Twice as many Ukrainians work in Slovakia now than before the Russian invasion.


Píšem or pišám?

"Do ľava," (to the left) I yelled, "Nie, do prava" (no, to the right), I gasped. "Dolšie," I screamed. "Nie, nie, horšie..." My Slovak girlfriend collapsed in laughter. Was it something I said?


Matthew J. Reynolds
Czech biochemist Jan Konvalinka.

Jan Konvalinka was expecting a pandemic before Covid-19 came along.


SkryťClose ad