Brno, Jan 15 (CTK) – The Czech judiciary must reopen the case of physician Jaroslav Bartak, who was given eight years in prison for planning three murders and blackmail, as the Supreme Court (NS) accepted his petition for appellate review, CTK has found out in the InfoSoud court database.
The reasons for the NS’s decision have not been released yet.
The Regional Court in Liberec, north Bohemia, which will have to deal with the case again, is now to deliver the NS’s verdict to the parties in the proceedings and only then release the justification.
Bartak was first sentenced to 12 years in prison for sexual violence against his female assistants. Then, he was given eight years in another case. Consequently, he was to serve an overall sentence of 20 years behind bars.
The NS’s current verdict applies to the latter case of murder plotting and blackmail.
According to the annulled verdict, Bartak planned the murders and blackmail in the custody prison in Liberec as a vengeance for his previous conviction. He wanted to use the money gained through blackmail to escape from prison.
Another prisoner, his cellmate, reported him.
Bartak asserted their debate was merely common chattering between two fellow prisoners, and claimed that he did not mean his words seriously. However, videos recorded by the other prisoner were a key piece of evidence against him.
Bartak’s defence counsel questioned the legal character of the video recordings, but the court ruled that they had been made in compliance with law.
In the past, the NS also dealt with Bartak’s first case and lowered the original 15-year prison sentence for demanding sex from his assistants by force to 12 years.
