Ružomberok: Drugs found in posted letters
Slovak media reported May 2 that employees of Ružomberok's postal service and local customs officers intercepted a letter containing two grams of hashish. The letter from Denmark was sent by Peter K.
A police spokesman said that this was the third such case in the Žilina region this year. He said that only recently employees of the same post office had helped to identify another suspicious letter, that time sent from the Netherlands. The plastic bag inside the letter also contained two grams of hashish.
He added that international letters with similar content are "becoming more and more frequent in Slovakia".
"Marijuana usually gets sent to Slovakia direct from the Netherlands, and hashish from Morocco through the Netherlands," Ján Pecko, head of the Žilina anti-drug squad, added.
"It's also home-grown here, but due to the climate in Slovakia this [marihuana] does not have such high quality," he said.
High Tatras: Tatra Rescue Service called to action 535 times
The Tatra Mountain Rescue Service (THS) carried out 535 rescue operations last winter, said THS representative Tomáš Petrík on May 1. In total, five people died in the mountains this winter, with victims coming from the Czech Republic and Poland.
Total "severe" injuries for the winter season totaled 265, he continued, mostly from skiing accidents. Petrík said that most skiing injuries were a result of poor skiing skills combined with over-estimation of an individual's abilities. Slopes in Štrbské Pleso remain open till May 9, he added.
Bojnice: Ghost Festival visitors attacked by locals
Four Bratislava residents aged between 23 and 31 visiting the Festival of Ghosts and Spirits at Bojnice castle, central Slovakia, were hospitalised after a fight in the castle's moat May 1.
The visitors initially had a verbal spat with unknown young men, who were later identified as locals. A fight broke out during which the locals stabbed the Bratislavans. Two of the four victims were seriously wounded and were immediately hospitalised.
Bratislava: Skinhead attacks leaves two injured, one dead
Separate skinhead attacks in Bratislava on April 27 left two people injured and one dead. The attacks occurred following a rock concert held at the Culture House on Vajnorská street.
According to a report by TV Markíza, a group of 10 skinheads attacked 22 year-old Peter and 23 year-old Rasťo as they left the concert. The victims, who were both stabbed in the back and are recovering in hospital, said they believed they had been attacked because they had "different music tastes" than their attackers.
An hour and a half later, 31 year-old Ignác M was fatally stabbed by three young men with shaved heads a few blocks away on Odborárske námestie. A police spokesman said that he "believed" Ignac M was half Roma.
Compiled by Martina Pisárová and Chris Togneri from TASR, SITA and press reports
