No One Accountable for Chovanec's Death, Rules Belgian Court

Brussels September 25 (TASR-correspondent) - The Belgian court issued on Wednesday a verdict that no one is criminally responsible for the death of Slovak citizen Jozef Chovanec, Slovak Consul General in Belgium Andrej Michalec has confirmed for TASR. Chovanec's wife, who is in Slovakia and is in touch with her lawyers in this case, has drawn the Consul General's attention to the verdict. The court stated that it was a regrettable coincidence of tragic circumstances. Chovancova's lawyers have told TASR that they're waiting for the court's verdict in written. Chovanec's widow and the state of Slovakia now have 15 days to appeal the verdict. Jozef Chovanec (38) died in February 2018 after being arrested by the Belgian federal police at Charleroi airport and the subsequent controversial actions of police officers. In 2020, released video footage from the cell showed the airport police officers kneeling on Chovanec's neck for more than 15 minutes, while one of them gave a Nazi salute during the act, much to the amusement of her colleagues. According to an expert analysis by Belgian doctors, the cause of his death was swelling of the brain, which he suffered after repeatedly banging his head against a wall in a detention cell. ko/mcs