Ľuboš Kosík, a former member of the Slovak Intelligence Service (SIS) has been kidnapped from his house by armed men in the Malian capital Bamako, AFP agency reported on Tuesday. Malian authorities have yet to officially confirm the kidnapping to the Slovak Foreign and European Affairs Ministry. Kosik's lawyer Youssouf Keita stated that the kidnapping took place last Tuesday (15 January), and that he's already filed a criminal complaint in this regard. The former intelligence officer has long claimed that he's willing to provide testimony on the 1995 kidnapping of former President Michal Kováč's son by the Slovak Intelligence Service, and on other cases concerning former members of the Service.
"We're very concerned about Kosík's kidnapping," said Michel Desert, a member of a group supporting Kosík, at the same time wondering out loud whether this move was ordered by Slovakia in order to have Kosík extradited illegally after a legal extradition was rejected by the Malian judiciary. Slovak Justice Minister Gábor Gál in December signed a new request for Kosík's extradition from Mali to Slovakia. According to official information, Kosík was still in prison in Mali, and only a few signatures were lacking for his extradition to Slovakia. However, SME daily reported in November that Kosík, who spent two years in a Malian prison after an international arrest warrant was issued against him for falsifying promissory notes, had been released from jail. The daily stated that Kosík had informed SME about his release himself.
Interior Minister Denisa Saková (Smer-SD) acknowledged that Mali is a high-risk country and that she hopes that the information provided by the Malian authorities is genuine. Kosík was originally sentenced to 14 years in prison and a fine of €100,000 for falsifying the notes, but he immediately escaped from Slovakia after the verdict. As he didn't pay the money, the Slovak court sentenced him to another four years in November. The verdict hasn't yet come into effect; it will be decided on by the Supreme Court, as Kosík's lawyer has appealed against it.
