Court Rejects Ex-judge Polka's Appeal for Retrial in Corruption Case

Banska Bystrica, February 17 (TASR) - The Specialised Criminal Court on Monday rejected the appeal of convicted former judge Pavel Polka for a retrial of his corruption case. The Specialised Criminal Court convicted Polka of bribery in 2021, based on his plea bargain. According to the court decision, the conditions to enable retrial haven't been met and no new evidence has turned up to justify any other decision than the issued verdict of suspended three-year sentence with five-year probation and fine of €150,000, which still stands. Originally, Polka pleaded guilty and expressed his remorse. Later, however, the former Zilina judge claimed that he had been forced to make the plea bargain deal under duress and pleaded his innocence. According to Polka, new facts have been coming to light about unlawful approach of law enforcement bodies and the court itself in high-profile corruption cases. Polka was apprehended in September 2020 as part of the operation codenamed Weed and charged with corruption over taking bribes worth €100,000 as a judge back in 2014-18. He allegedly split the bribes with other defendants and kept about €40,000. mf