Prague, Aug 22 (CTK) – Justice Minister Robert Pelikan (ANO) has decided to release Czech Supreme State Attorney Pavel Zeman from confidentiality after the Chamber of Deputies commission investigating the leak of information from open files gave him the reasons for it on Tuesday, Pelikan has told journalists.
“At last I have learnt to what extent and why the commission needs to release him from confidentiality. I did this so that the affair were not prolonged,” Pelikan said.
He said Zeman had been released of confidentiality “in the necessary extent.”
The commission may question him next week.
At first, Pelikan refused to release Zeman from confidentiality for the questioning before the commission, arguing that the commission had not presented sufficient arguments under the law on the state attorney’s office.
The commission’s chairman, Martin Plisek (TOP 09), argued that based on similar requests, other witnesses had been released from confidentiality by their superiors and accused Pelikan of obstructions.
Earlier on Tuesday, the commission questioned the former head of the police organised crime department, Robert Slachta, who dismissed the idea that the information had leaked from the files when he headed the body.
When it comes to the leaks from the state attorney’s office, a similar statement was made by Prague Supreme State Attorney Lenka Bradacova.
The commission of investigation was set up to deal with leaked recordings of discussions between Marek Pribil, former journalist of daily Mlada fronta Dnes (MfD), and ANO head Andrej Babis, who owned MfD at the critical time.
Pribil and Babis spoke about releasing compromising material.
Babis said the recordings are manipulated and a part of a campaign which he claims is being waged against him.
He filed a complaint against them, but the police have shelved it.
Both Babis and Pribil have dismissed having had “open files,” or files on cases being investigated, at their disposal.
The commission is to check whether law was violated by someone gaining files of law-enforcement bodies illegally.
