Illustrative stock photo (source: SITA)
Even though the regional court decided that the criminal prosecution of the elite investigators of the National Criminal Agency (NAKA) was unfounded, the General Prosecutor’s Office refuses to drop charges.
Four NAKA investigators who were members of the Očistec (Purgatory) team, working on high-profile corruption cases – Ján Čurilla, Pavol Ďurka, Milan Sabota, Štefan Mašin – as well as former head of the police inspection service, Peter Scholtz, remain accused of abusing the powers of public officials, the Aktuality.sk website reported.
The General Prosecutor’s Office accepted only part of the objections to the charges. For example, Čurilla and Ďurka are no longer being prosecuted for obstructing justice and abusing their powers in two cases, including one concerning their alleged manipulation of testimony of a former Takáčovci gang member, Csaba Dömötör.
Yet, there are still charges related to the alleged preparation of the purposeful prosecution of members of what has been dubbed the anti-team – a team working under the inspectorate since March 2021 to investigate allegations the opposition voiced against the Purgatory team – and the Slovak Information Service (SIS) intelligence agency, Aktuality.sk reported.
“We respect the decision of the General Prosecutor’s Office on the four NAKA investigators,” said interim Police Corps President Štefan Hamran, as quoted by Aktuality.sk, adding that he sees no reason to re-evaluate his steps at NAKA. “The investigators still have my trust.”
Čurilla has been meanwhile promoted to deputy chief of the Bratislava’s NAKA branch. Hamran sees no reason to change this decision, either, the Sme daily reported.
