RECENTLY released from pre-trial custody pending charges of accepting a bribe, Košice Deputy Mayor Eugen Čuňo resumed his post November 15, Košice city hall spokeswoman Zuzana Bobríková told the SITA news agency.
Čuňo is in charge of the city's economic issues, strategic financing and transportation. Along with two others accused in this case, Čuňo has been in pre-trial custody since March pending prosecution. City Hall is presuming he is innocent until proven guilty and so has not found it necessary to remove him from his post.
However, the Slovak Democratic and Christian Union (SDKÚ) regional organisation in Košice has suspended him as vice-chairman until the court issues a verdict.
Police caught Čuňo and lawyer Ladislav P. red-handed, accepting a bribe of over Sk1 million (€25,000). Interior Minister Vladimír Palko said that the money was an instalment in a bribe totalling Sk18 million (€451,000).
It is alleged that the accused men asked for the money from a construction company, Kame Slovakia Group, in exchange for an Sk181 million (€4,537) contract to construct rental apartments in Košice.
The police used Kame representative Maroš K. as an undercover agent in the case.
