Murder of Ján Kuciak

Murder of Ján Kuciak
Murdered journalist Ján Kuciak.
Date 21 February 2018[1]
Outcome Resignation of Prime Minister Robert Fico, and his cabinet
Deaths Ján Kuciak (27)
Martina Kušnírová (27)
Burial Gregorovce (Kušnírová)
Štiavnik (Kuciak)
Suspect(s) 'Ndrangheta crime syndicate

Ján Kuciak (17 May 1990 – 21 February 2018) was a Slovak investigative journalist. Kuciak worked as a reporter for the news website Aktuality.sk, focused mainly on investigating tax fraud of several businessmen with connections to top-level Slovak politicians.[2] He and his fiancée, Martina Kušnírová, were shot dead in February 2018 in their home in Veľká Mača, Galanta District, Slovakia.[3]

Kuciak was the first journalist murdered in Slovakia since the country's independence.[4] The murders caused shock and disbelief throughout the country, sparking mass popular protests and a political crisis,[5] with the government of Prime Minister Robert Fico on one side, and President Andrej Kiska and opposition parties on the other.[6] The crisis culminated on 15 March with the resignation of Prime Minister Fico and his entire cabinet.[7]

In September 2018, Slovak police stated that Kuciak was murdered because of his investigative work, and that the murder had been ordered.[8][9] They arrested eight suspects,[10] charging three of them with first-degree murder.[10]

Background

Jan Kuciak was born on 17 May 1990 in the village of Štiavnik in Bytča District. He studied and graduated with a masters degree in journalism at the University of Constantine the Philosopher in Nitra, where he continued his studies as a post-graduate student in the field of mass media communication. While working on his PhD, he also held a teaching position at the same faculty.[11]

He later started to work for the newspaper Hospodárske noviny, before taking up a position in the editorial office of Aktuality.sk, primarily as an investigative journalist. He focused in particular on tax evasion, including cases related to the ruling Direction - Social Democracy party headed by Prime Minister Robert Fico. He had previously written about companies with unclear ownership as well as suspected systemic embezzlement from European Union funds.[12]

In the last article published before his death, on 9 February 2018, he wrote about businessman Marián Kočner, who first became known in Slovakia in 1998 due to his unsuccessful attempt to take over the private television news network TV Markíza with the help of the State Intelligence Service (SIS). Kuciak had previously detailed in his articles how Kočner was involved in an elaborate VAT tax fraud scheme. According to Kuciak's investigation, Kočner was buying and selling luxury apartments to himself, sometimes at the symbolic rate of €1, defrauding the state of substantial tax revenue. Kočner then allegedly began to threaten Kuciak and his family. Kuciak filed a criminal complaint against Kočner in September 2017, but according to Kuciak, no police officer was assigned to the case in 44 days since the complaint was made.[3][13]

Assassination

At the time of his death, Kuciak was 27 years old. He lived in the village of Veľká Mača, about 65 km (40 miles) east of the capital Bratislava. On the morning of 26 February, police were called to his home by family members after the couple had not answered phone calls for more than four days.[14] Kuciak's fiancée, Martina Kusnirova, usually spoke with her mother on a daily basis. Her mother stated that she last spoke with her daughter in the afternoon of 21 February. When she tried to contact her again that evening, there was no reply. The family stated that Kusnirova's cellphone appeared to switch off three days later, probably due to a dead battery.[15]

Police entering the house found Kuciak and Kušnírová shot dead. Kuciak had been shot twice in the chest, while Kušnírová had been shot once in the head from the front. Both were shot at close range with a 9 mm caliber handgun. There was no evidence of a struggle and nothing appeared to have been stolen. Police found two empty cartridges at the crime scene as well as several unused bullets.[16] The murders were initially believed to have been committed sometime between February 22 and 25,[3] but were subsequently suspected to have taken place in the evening of February 21.[16]

Reactions

A march for Ján and Martina in Brno

The murders sent shockwaves throughout Slovakia.[14] The day after the news broke, gatherings were held around the country in tribute. Candles were lit at the Slovak National Uprising Square in Bratislava and in front of the editorial office of Aktuality.sk, where Kuciak worked. Similar gatherings were also organised in the Czech cities of Prague and Brno.[17] President Andrej Kiska stated that he was "shocked and horrified that something like this happened in Slovakia".[3] The President of the European Parliament, Antonio Tajani, called on Slovakia to launch a thorough investigation, offering international support if needed, adding that "the European Parliament will not rest until justice is done".[18] Ringier Axel Springer, the parent company of Aktuality.sk, called the murders a "cruel assassination", vowing to redouble their journalistic efforts.[14]

Protests

For decent Slovakia protest in Bratislava, 16 March 2018

On Friday, 2 March, up to 25,000 people protested in Bratislava against the attacks.[19] On 9 March, protests were held in 48 towns and cities in Slovakia as well as 17 other cities around the world. In Bratislava alone, about 60,000 people held a protest march, the biggest turnout of any demonstration since the Velvet Revolution in 1989.[20] The protests were endorsed by several universities in Slovakia and the Czech Republic, teachers, school associations, artists and non-governmental organisations. 21 universities cancelled afternoon lectures to allow students and employees to attend the protests.[21]

Two days after Prime Minister Fico's resignation, an even larger demonstration was held in Bratislava with over 65,000 people participating under slogans such as "Enough of Smer" and "Early elections". Former Speaker of Parliament and ex-presidential candidate František Mikloško made an impassioned speech during the protest saying that "the revolution started by the parents has to be finished by their children". He argued that only twice in the history of post-war Czechoslovakia have popular protests managed to make the government resign: in November 1989 and now, adding that "when somebody tries to abuse their power in the future, they should remember March 2018 and the mass protests". Mikloško's speech was accompanied by the ringing of keys, reminiscent of the Velvet Revolution in 1989.[22]

Investigation

In a press conference the same morning, Slovak Police President Tibor Gašpar stated that the murders "likely have something to do with [Kuciak’s] investigative activities".[23][24][25] The Government of Slovakia offered €1 million for information leading to the murderers. Prime Minister Robert Fico made the announcement during a press conference with Interior Minister Robert Kaliňák and Police President Tibor Gašpar.[26] During the press conference, described by critics as "surreal"[2] and "bizarre",[12] they displayed packs of banknotes amounting to one million euros, which the government promised to give to anyone who came forward with relevant information that could help explain the murder.[27] Furthermore, Prime Minister Fico announced the creation of an inter-agency task force involving employees of the General Prosecutor’s Office, Special Prosecutor’s Office, the Interior Ministry and the SIS in attempting to solve the case.[3]

At the time of his murder, Kuciak was working on a report about Slovak connections with the Italian organized crime syndicate 'Ndrangheta.[28] He had previously reported on organized tax fraud involving businesspeople close to the ruling Smer-SD party.[29] On 28 February, Aktuality.sk published Kuciak's last, unfinished story.[30] The article details the activities of Italian businessmen with ties to organised crime who have settled in eastern Slovakia, and have spent years embezzling European Union funds intended for the development of this relatively poor region, as well as their connections to high-ranking state officials, such as Viliam Jasaň, a deputy and the Secretary of the State Security Council of Slovakia, or Mária Trošková, a former nude model who became Chief Adviser of Prime Minister Robert Fico. Both Jasaň and Trošková took leave of absence on the same day, stating that they would return to their positions once the investigations were concluded.[31]

Protest in Košice, 9 March 2018

Initial arrests

On 1 March, four days after the murders, heavily armed units from the Slovak Police Corps' elite National Crime Agency (NAKA) raided several locations in eastern Slovakia, in the cities of Michalovce and Trebišov.[32] Antonino Vadalà, an Italian businessman mentioned in Kuciak's report, was detained along with his two brothers Sebastiano and Bruno, as well as his cousin Pietro Caprotta and several other men of Italian origin.[33] All the detained men were released from custody after 48 hours, due to lack of sufficient evidence.[34] On the day of the arrests, General Prosecutor Jaromír Čižnár ordered the police to give no further updates to the press or the public regarding the investigation.[35] Vadala was rearrested on 13 March, this time due to an international warrant issued by the Italian police.[36] According to the arrest warrant, Vadala is suspected of drug trafficking as well as money laundering. Among other offences, he was said to have been planning to import large quantities of cocaine from South America. On 23 April, Slovakia approved Italy's request for extradition.[37]

As a result of their investigation into the murder, the Slovak police stated that Kuciak had been murdered because of his work as an investigative journalist, and that the murder had been ordered.[38][39] In late September 2018, eight suspects were arrested,[10] though the police suggested that the person who had ordered the killing was not among them, and is unknown.[40] Three of those arrested were later charged with first-degree murder.[10]

Political crisis

The same day the murder was announced, Prime Minister Fico called on the political opposition not to "exploit" the situation.[3] Meanwhile, a number of opposition politicians accused the ruling Smer-SD party of indirect involvement. Member of Parliament Veronika Remišová, from the opposition OĽaNO party, compared the killings to the infamous murder of Róbert Remiáš, a police officer who was assassinated in 1996, in an act widely believed to have been a contract killing by the Slovak mafia on the orders of Prime Minister Vladimír Mečiar.[41] On 27 February, Freedom and Solidarity and OL'aNO demanded the resignation of Interior Minister Robert Kaliňák and Police President Tibor Gašpar.[42]

Protest in Bratislava, 9 March 2018
Interior Minister Robert Kaliňák speaking with Prime Minister Robert Fico

The crisis escalated on 4 March when President Kiska made a live broadcast on state television, warning the government against further polarising the country. He called for either a "radical cabinet reshuffle" or a snap election.[43] The president's speech infuriated Fico, who accused Kiska of "joining the opposition".[43] Furthermore, he accused the president of conspiring with Hungarian-American billionaire George Soros in the planning of a coup d'etat, based on the fact that President Kiska met with Soros at Soros' apartment in New York City in September 2017, ostensibly to discuss issues related to the Roma minority.[44]

On 28 February, two days after the news of Kuciak's murder broke, Minister of Culture Marek Maďarič announced his resignation.[45] Announcing his decision to the press, Madaric stated that "as a culture minister, I can't cope with the fact that a journalist was killed during my tenure."[46][47] Robert Kaliňák, Minister of the Interior and Deputy Prime Minister, resigned on 12 March 2018 after weeks of mounting pressure.[48] The Most-Hid party, the junior coalition partner in the government, had demanded the resignation of Kalinak in exchange for continued support of Smer-SD.[49] The next day, Most-Hid joined the calls for snap elections, announcing that it would leave the government if it failed to reach a deal with its two coalition partners, Smer-SD and the Slovak National Party (SNS). Most-Híd Chairman, Béla Bugár, announced the decision after an eight-hour session of the Most-Hid Republican Council, the party's decision-making body.[50]

Fico resigns

On 14 March, following a meeting with President Kiska, Prime Minister Fico announced that he would resign as Prime Minister to avoid early elections and "solve the political crisis".[51] During the meeting, Fico laid out a number of specific conditions to be met by the President in order for him to resign, including that the result of the 2016 Slovak parliamentary election be respected, that the current ruling government coalition must continue, and that Smer-SD, as the largest party in parliament, would name the next Prime Minister. Fico stated that he already had a candidate in mind, widely reported in Slovak media as Deputy Prime Minister Peter Pellegrini.[52] On 15 March, President Kiska formally accepted the resignation of Fico and his cabinet, and tasked Pellegrini with the forming of a new government.[7]

See also

References

  1. ↑ "Prokurátor: Čas Kuciakovy vraždy známe s přesností na pět minut. Byla zřejmě na objednávku". iROZHLAS (in Czech). Retrieved 2018-03-26.
  2. 1 2 Cameron, Rob (28 February 2018). "Slovakia grapples with murdered journalist's last story". BBC. Retrieved 28 February 2018.
  3. 1 2 3 4 5 6 "UPDATED: Investigative journalist killed in his house". Spectator.sk. Retrieved 1 March 2018.
  4. ↑ Nicholson, Tom. "Slovakian journalism's darkest day". Politico.eu.
  5. ↑ Madshus, Karin. "Land i sjokk etter drap på ung journalist og hans forlovede. Milliondusør utloves for tips i saken" (in Norwegian). Retrieved 1 March 2018.
  6. ↑ Vonsak, Martin. "Minúta po minúte: Prokurátor obviňuje Kaliňáka a Počiatka z legalizačnej schémy". SME.sk. Retrieved 8 March 2018.
  7. 1 2 "Pellegrini is the new PM". Spectator.sk. Retrieved 15 March 2018.
  8. ↑ a.s., Petit Press. "Investigatívneho reportéra Jána Kuciaka zavraždili, zrejme v súvislosti s jeho prácou". domov.sme.sk (in Slovak). Retrieved 2018-09-28.
  9. ↑ "Prokuratura: Jána Kuciaka zavraždili kvůli práci. Hledáme muže, který by mohl mít informace". iROZHLAS (in Czech). Retrieved 2018-09-28.
  10. 1 2 3 4 "Tři z osmi zadržených při razii v kauze Kuciak byli obviněni z úkladné vraždy". iROZHLAS (in Czech). Retrieved 2018-09-28.
  11. ↑ Čunderlíková, Jana (28 February 2018). "Skromný, pracovitý, čestný. Ján Kuciak očami jeho študentov". Aktuality.sk. Retrieved 8 March 2018.
  12. 1 2 Editorial Board (7 March 2018). "A muckraking journalist is murdered in Slovakia". The Washington Post. Retrieved 9 March 2018.
  13. ↑ "UPDATED: Marches for murdered journalist will be on Friday". Spectator.sk. Retrieved 8 March 2018.
  14. 1 2 3 "Slovakia shocked by killing of journalist and partner". BBC News. Retrieved 1 March 2018.
  15. ↑ Cermakova, Judita. "Bratia zastrelenej Martiny: Namiesto svadby vybavujeme pohreb". Korzar. Retrieved 14 March 2018.
  16. 1 2 "Circumstances indicate that Kuciak's and Kušnírová's deaths were a contract killing". Spectator.sk. Retrieved 28 March 2018.
  17. ↑ "Slovaks and Czechs pay tribute to the murdered journalist". Spectator.sk. Retrieved 1 March 2018.
  18. ↑ Rezaian, Jason (26 February 2018). "Police believe a journalist was killed for reporting on fraud in the heart of Europe". The Washington Post. Retrieved 9 March 2018.
  19. ↑ "Deloire: Bratislava is the capital of press freedom today". Spectator.sk. Retrieved 4 March 2018.
  20. ↑ "Zažili sme najväčšie protesty od roku 1989" (in Slovak). Aktuality.sk. 9 March 2018. Retrieved 9 March 2018.
  21. ↑ "Enough of Fico, thousands of people shouted at gatherings across Slovakia". Spectator.sk. Retrieved 9 March 2018.
  22. ↑ "Enough of Smer, people chanted in streets". Spectator.sk. 16 March 2018. Retrieved 17 March 2018.
  23. ↑ Boffey, Daniel. "Slovakian journalist investigating claims of tax fraud linked to ruling party shot dead". The Guardian. Retrieved 26 February 2018.
  24. ↑ "Investigative journalist Jan Kuciak killed in Slovakia". Deutsche Welle. 2018-02-26.
  25. ↑ Janicek, Karel. "Slovak investigative reporter, girlfriend found shot dead". The Washington Post.
  26. ↑ "Jan Kuciak murder: Slovak PM offers €1m reward in appeal". BBC News. Retrieved 1 March 2018.
  27. ↑ "Fico stands by Trošková". Spectator.sk. Retrieved 1 March 2018.
  28. ↑ a.s., Petit Press. "Kuciak investigated links between politicians and mafia".
  29. ↑ "Kuciak investigated links between politicians and mafia". Retrieved 1 March 2018.
  30. ↑ Kuciak, Ján. "Talianska mafia na Slovensku. Jej chápadlá siahajú aj do politiky". Aktuality.sk (in Slovak). Retrieved 1 March 2018.
  31. ↑ "Trošková and Jasaň are leaving their posts at Government's Office". Spectator.sk. Retrieved 1 March 2018.
  32. ↑ Jabrik, Peter. "Polícia udrela na východe. Pozrite si raziu na Zemplíne". Retrieved 1 March 2018.
  33. ↑ "Polícia pri razii na východe Slovenska zadržala podnikateľa z Kuciakovho článku" (in Slovak). Aktuality.sk. Retrieved 1 March 2018.
  34. ↑ "Police release all seven detained Italians". Retrieved 4 March 2018.
  35. ↑ "More concerns about independence of Kuciak murder investigation". Spectator.sk. 1 March 2018. Retrieved 9 March 2018.
  36. ↑ "Italian entrepreneur Vadala reportedly detained due to drugs". Retrieved 13 March 2018.
  37. ↑ "Slovakia to extradite Vadala to Italy for prosecution". Retrieved 5 May 2018.
  38. ↑ a.s., Petit Press. "Investigatívneho reportéra Jána Kuciaka zavraždili, zrejme v súvislosti s jeho prácou". domov.sme.sk (in Slovak). Retrieved 2018-09-28.
  39. ↑ "Prokuratura: Jána Kuciaka zavraždili kvůli práci. Hledáme muže, který by mohl mít informace". iROZHLAS (in Czech). Retrieved 2018-09-28.
  40. ↑ "Policie zatkla podezřelé z vraždy Jána Kuciaka a jeho partnerky, informují slovenská média". iROZHLAS (in Czech). Retrieved 2018-09-28.
  41. ↑ "Fico odmieta zneužívanie tragickej vraždy Kuciaka na politický boj". Sme.sk. Retrieved 13 March 2018.
  42. ↑ "Opozícia spúšťa petíciu za odstúpenie Kaliňáka a policajného šéfa". SME.sk. Retrieved 13 March 2018.
  43. 1 2 "UPDATED: Fico won't step down, accuses Kiska of joining opposition". Spectator.sk. Retrieved 13 March 2018.
  44. ↑ "Fico steers conversation to Soros, saying he will deal with politics later". Spectator.sk. Retrieved 13 March 2018.
  45. ↑ "Vražda Kuciaka: Jasaň a Trošková opustí úřad vlády, ministr kultury Maďarič odstoupil" (in Czech). ČT24.
  46. ↑ Balogova, Beata. "Maďarič zrušil Fica aj jeho refrén". SME. Retrieved 28 February 2018.
  47. ↑ "Culture Minister Maďarič resigns". Retrieved 1 March 2018.
  48. ↑ Dedinský, Matej. "Minister Kaliňák podáva demisiu" (in Slovak). Aktuality.sk.
  49. ↑ "Slovakia journalist murder: Interior minister resigns". BBC News. Retrieved 12 March 2018.
  50. ↑ "Most-Híd calls for early elections". Spectator.sme.sk. Retrieved 13 March 2018.
  51. ↑ Terenzani, Michaela. "UPDATED: Fico is ready to resign tomorrow". Retrieved 14 March 2018.
  52. ↑ "Minúta po minúte: Fico podá demisiu, novým premiérom môže byť Pellegrini". Sme.sk. Retrieved 14 March 2018.
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