Former functionary of the Liptovsky Mikulas military academy Pavel Bucka is suspected of longstanding cooperation with Russian military intelligence and of handing over sensitive materials over to that organisation, interim police chief Stefan Hamran and Special Prosecutor Daniel Lipsic reported at a press conference on Tuesday. Law enforcement proposes that Pavel Bucka should be kept in custody due to concerns that he might continue his criminal activities. The police also arrested Bohus Garbar of Kosice, Jozef Mihalcin of Vranov nad Toplou and Bohus M. of Ruzomberok for espionage on behalf of and corruption linked to the Russian Federation.
According to Lipsic, Pavel Bucka and Bohus Garbar might face 4-13 years in jail. Both men have admitted their guilt.
Pavel Bucka was providing the Russian secret services with intel concerning the interests of NATO and the Slovak Armed Forces since 2013. He's revealed how much he's been paid for this activity. Bohus Garbar used to be a correspondent for pro-Russian website Hlavne Spravy, now shut down by the National Security Authority. He faces charges of espionage and bribery and has admitted to both crimes. As of around April 2021 he began serving as an intelligence contact in Slovakia for Russia's GRU military secret service, whose officers were operating under the veneer of the diplomatic cover of the Russian Embassy.
Both Jozef Mihalcin and Bohus M. were used as sources of information for Bohus Garbar. Both have been released without any charges pressed. Mihalcin worked as an assistant to a lawmaker in Parliament, and Garbar was attempting to acquire sensitive information from Parliament through him, in particular classified information in the secret services' annual reports. Bohus M. was a former member of the Slovak Intelligence Service (SIS), where he worked until the end of 2021.
The special prosecutor praised the work of Military Intelligence, which made it possible to launch the criminal prosecutions.
Source: TASR
