Police: Searches Continue after Arresting Terror Suspect in Kosice

Kosice, January 8 (TASR) - Police officers and other involved forces are continuing to carry out further procedures and house searches in the Zemplin area in connection with the arrest of a 48-year-old man in Kosice, who is suspected of committing terrorism and other crimes, Kosice regional police spokeswoman Lenka Ivanova sain on Wednesday. The man is currently detained. "Today's operations in Zemplin were also preceded by extensive and extremely meticulous preparation, which also included the elimination or complete minimisation of possible danger," said Ivanova. The spokeswoman added that the investigator hasn't yet charged any specific person. "After the completion of today's operation in Zemplin and according to its result, a decision will be made on further procedure in the case and on the penalty for committing such acts," stated the spokeswoman. The police arrested the suspect on Tuesday (January 7) morning. The police carried out the operation on one of the streets in Kosice's borough of Dargovskych hrdinov. The raid also included a special task force, the Jasov Control Chemical Laboratory, the Fire and Rescue Corps (HaZZ), bomb-disposal experts and chemists from the Criminalistics and Expertise Institute, and the army's 103rd regiment. According to the police, the Slovak Intelligence Service (SIS) also contributed significantly to the successful result. The same man was also arrested in Kosice in 2021. At that time he was found in possession of various chemical materials and a large quantity of chemicals, dangerous substances and substances for the production of explosives, and even ammunition and non-functional ammunition. As a result of the proceedings at the time, the police charged him with the crime of illicit arming and trafficking in weapons, and he was given a suspended sentence in court. According to the police spokeswoman, 48-year-old Marian [name abbreviated due to legal reasons] became radicalised as the years passed and his activities gradually took on contours related to terrorism. "Marian, mainly through professional articles freely available on the internet and scientific literature on energetic materials and other sources, acquired the knowledge, techniques and skills for producing and using explosives, firearms, chemical substances and poisons, which he then shared on his own social communication platforms, 'offering' guidance on the procedures for the production of precursors, explosives from freely available sources and their use in public spaces, the production of poisons and chemical weapons, and describing the exact procedures for various detonations and for placing explosives," reported Ivanova. The police went on to say that the man also used his publicly accessible profiles to endorse violence, describe various massacres, post radical opinions with left-wing extremist leanings and instructions on how to make weapons and explosives that could inspire others and incite them to commit terrorist crimes. am/mcs