Martin Wäldl, the spokesperson of the Police Corps Presidium informed that the National Crime Agency (NAKA) on Thursday had pressed charges against the far-right People's Party Our Slovakia (ĽSNS) MP Stanislav Mizík. The accusations concern the lawmaker's statements on a social network website in which he made comments concerning several recipients of state honours with reference to their Jewish origin. As the public broadcaster RTVS informed, the police took away the MP's PC and telephone. The investigator was able to do so since MPs' parliamentary immunity only protects them in the case of statements made in Parliament and not on social media.
The far-right party's chairman Kotleba convened a press conference in response to the police search of the office of an LSNS MP earlier in the day and the pressing of extremism-related charges against him.
"What is the precedent here is that the police intervened against the MP directly during a session of the parliamentary education committee, of which he's a member. Based on fabricated accusations, it clearly violently interrupted the free exercise of his MP's mandate, which he acquired in a democratic election. That has never happened in the history of contemporary Slovakia before," said Kotleba, alluding to the fact that the police apprehended the MP at the committee session.
The accused MP did not participate in the press conference, as according to Kotleba he was still reeling from the shock caused by the police raid.
The chair of the Parliamentary School Committee and ruling SMER MP Ľubomír Petrák claims that the police action did not affect the mandate of the MP Stanislav Mizík.
"I find the whole process very sophisticated. The investigator did not enter the Committee, did not interrupt its debate. Once MP Mizík had excused himself, I can say that he took an active part in helping the investigator," said Ľubomír Petrák.
The head of the Interior ministry's press department Ivan Netik informed that the search of the premises is within the purview of a police investigator acting independently in the procedure and following instructions from the prosecutor in charge of the case. "The premises were searched in line with the Code of Criminal Procedure," said Netik.
