The former chairman of the Slovak National Party (SNS), Ján Slota, was charged on Wednesday, June 26.
The prosecutor of the District Prosecutor’s Office in Čadca filed the charge, a misdemeanour for driving under the influence of an addictive substance, the spokesperson of the Regional Prosecutor’s Office in Žilina, Milan Čisárik, informed the SITA newswire, adding that the Čadca district court will handle the case. If convicted, Slota faces up to one year in prison, as well as a fine and a ban from driving.
The police detained Slota on May 9, in Čadca, after he refused to stop and attempted to flee traffic officers. After refusing to submit to a breathalyser test or to provide a blood sample, he was automatically deemed to have a blood-alcohol level above 1 part per thousand (and thus liable for criminal prosecution), and placed into custody, the Sme daily reported. However, for reasons that remain unclear, Slota was released only a few hours after his arrest, and as a result, avoided the super-fast-tracked proceeding typically used in such cases, Sme reported.
Slota was first spotted by town police officers, who believed him to be drunk and called the state police after seeing him get into a car. He was detained, but released soon after. The officers who released him were reprimanded for doing so by the regional police head.
(Source: SITA, Sme)
Compiled by Zuzana Vilikovská from press reports
The Slovak Spectator cannot vouch for the accuracy of the information presented in its Flash News postings.
