In Bratislava, Slovakia, an appeals court affirmed a previous decision regarding former President Andrej Kiska, who has been found guilty of tax fraud, resulting in a suspended sentence.
On this occasion, the regional court located in Presov adjusted the initial sentence from two years to one year, removed a financial penalty of 15,000 euros (approximately $16,300) imposed earlier by a lower court in Poprad, and lifted a six-year prohibition against Kiska engaging in business activities.
While the ruling is conclusive, Kiska expressed through a Facebook post his intent to pursue an extraordinary challenge at the Supreme Court in an effort to vindicate himself.
The 61-year-old Kiska, who maintains his innocence, is notable for being the first former president in Slovakia to face trial and receive a conviction.
The allegations against him date back to 2014 during his presidential campaign, when he transitioned from a successful business career to a philanthropic role and entered the political arena as a newcomer.
Court proceedings revealed that Kiska improperly accounted for tax receipts related to his presidential bid as part of the financial records of his family business, KTAG.
KTAG, through Kiska’s business partner Eduard Kuckovsky, subsequently claimed a tax refund exceeding 155,000 euros (about $168,300), an action deemed outside the scope of the company’s legitimate operations.
In the 2014 election, Kiska triumphed over Robert Fico, the then-populist Prime Minister, securing the largely ceremonial presidential position for a five-year term.
Kiska’s presidency was marked by tensions with Fico, whose leftist Smer party was mired in corruption controversies.
Kiska was an advocate for significant street protests that emerged during a political crisis in 2018, which was sparked by the assassination of an investigative journalist probing extensive government corruption.
With pro-Western viewpoints, Kiska opted not to seek a second term in 2019, and last year, Fico and his Smer party successfully won parliamentary elections, subsequently forming a new coalition government with two additional parties.