SUPREME Court President Štefan Harabin did have a phone conversation with alleged drug lord Baki Sadiki on August 5, 1994, but they discussed only “private matters”, the General Prosecutor’s Office confirmed before the Bratislava Regional Court. This stems from the valid court verdict awarding Harabin €150,000 in compensation, the Sme daily reported in its December 3 issue.
Judges Valéria Kleinová, Michaela Frimmelová and Ingrid Degmová Pospíšilová ruled that Harabin will receive compensation as a result of the former head of the General Prosecutor’s Office, Dobroslav Trnka, having confirmed the authenticity of the phone call. They were not however concerned over the existence of the transcript, claiming that Trnka allegedly had no right to discuss it publicly, Sme wrote.
Trnka was allegedly bound by a confidentiality pledge, and by violating it he caused harm to Harabin worthy of financial compensation.
Though Harabin continually stated that he did not have a conversation with Sadiki, he later excluded himself from the trial, saying he knew Sadiki’s wife, Sme wrote.
The prosecutor’s office still claims to have the transcript of the conversation on file, as it was kept to contest Harabin’s bias if he was to decide in Sadiki’s case. Spokesperson for the prosecutor’s office Andrea Predajňová says that they are now checking all the files pertaining to the Sadiki case and will consider appealing the verdict, as reported by Sme.
Source: Sme
To read more about this story please see: Harabin to get €150,000
Compiled by Radka Minarechová from press reports
The Slovak Spectator cannot vouch for the accuracy of the information presented in its Flash News postings.
