Prosecutor: Murderous Sator Gang on Par with Cosa Nostra and 'Ndrangheta

Bratislava, November 14 (TASR) - The gang of Ludovit Sator, whose senior member Frantisek Zakal was sentenced to 25 years for several crimes earlier this week, including the murder of Sator, has no parallel in Slovakia when it comes to the number of murders, while in Europe it can only be compared to major Italian Mafia organisations the Cosa Nostra and 'Ndrangheta, TASR has been told by a special prosecutor who was speaking on the condition of anonymity for security reasons. "It would be too early to say how many murders will be cleared up. I believe that in terms of the number of murders, this group can only be compared to the Italian Cosa Nostra and 'Ndrangheta," said the prosecutor from the Special Prosecutor's Office, who added that if anyone believes that Slovakia doesn't need laws like Italy's to combat organised crime, they've probably misunderstood or ignored reality. "When a single group has been able to carry out 50-80 murders, I believe that it's high time to make [laws] stricter...," said the prosecutor. He noted that the gang continued to operate freely even after several warrants were issued against its boss Sator. "He was seen in restaurants and on family holidays both in Slovakia and abroad," said the prosecutor. According to him, this was mainly due to the fact that the group had links to senior police officers, including then high-ranking figure at the Office for the Fight Against Organised Crime Boris Drevenak (in the meantime sentenced to 17 years, but still on the run) and a former director of an anti-crime unit from Trnava. "As far as the issue [with the police] went in Trnava, the investigation didn't lead to any results," he said. "A warrant was issued against group boss Ludovit Sator as early as after ten murders. It was shown on TV, even abroad. However, the way in which Slovakia dealt with this was to let Sator have lunch [in restaurants] and to go skiing in Slovakia, Austria and Italy. Their arrogance was so striking that he even used to meet the-then prosecutor-general. They weren't afraid of anything," said the prosecutor. The Sator gang was active mainly in southern Slovakia and Hungary between 1999 and 2010 and was involved in violence and economic crimes. The group murdered ten members of the rival Papay gang at a bar in Dunajska Streda (Trnava region) in 1999 along with several unsuspecting 'straw men' hired as formal senior managers of companies involved in crimes. Before burying its victims in remote places, the gang used to pour acid, chlorine-based substances or quick lime on their bodies so that they wouldn't attract the attention of wild animals. bub/df