A REPORTER from the Plus 7 dní tabloid weekly has been charged for attempting to eavesdrop on a closed government meeting. Václav Nekvapil faces up to two years in jail, according to Ján Packa, the head of the office for the protection of constitutional officials.
On Sunday May 7, during an open house day at the Government Office, Nekvapil used cellophane tape to fix a mobile phone under the table where Prime Minister Mikuláš Dzurinda sits.
Security found the mobile phone on May 10, the SME daily wrote.
"With a certain technical adjustment it could have been activated and [the people involved could have] eavesdropped what was going on [during the cabinet meeting]," Packa said.
Packa said the journalist admitted having planted the phone under the table, but said he merely wanted to test the level of security at the Government Office.
Plus 7 dní refused to comment on the case.
Journalists in Slovakia have tried similar tricks in the past. In one case they smuggled a knife into the parliament building despite security checks at the entry gate; journalists also claimed to have entered a secure area at Bratislava airport without being stopped.
