10/04/2005

CzechRep to provide Poland with legal aid over Unipetrol case

The Czech side will provide Polish colleagues with legal aid in the investigation into the privatisation of the Czech petrochemical giant Unipetrol, the Prague City State Attorney's Office said.

"They have asked for the recording of a discussion between [former head of the Czech PM's office Zdenek] Dolezel and [Polish lobbyist] Jacek Spyra," the office's employee said.

According to information CTK has gained, the Czech authorities will probably also comply with Poland's possible request for certain Czechs to be interrogated.

Neither side would however say who the people are. According to former information and media speculation, Polish investigators might be interested in former Czech PM Stanislav Gross and current Finance Minister Bohuslav Sobotka (both the senior ruling Social Democrats, CSSD).

The above recording, which the Czech commercial television channel Nova has broadcast, has stirred up the scandal around the privatisation of Unipetrol by the Polish concern PKN Orlen last year.

Jerzy Balicki, spokesman for the appellate prosecutor's office in Krakow, said in early September that Poland is planning to send to the Czech Republic another request for legal aid, but did not elaborate.

The Krakow prosecutor's office is interested in the Unipetrol privatisation in connection with the investigation into the "fuel scandal."

The scandal involves extensive fuel frauds, in which some 1300 firms are entangled.

"Within the investigation into the 'fuel scandal' we are trying to gather the maximum possible quantity of information on the key business decisions made in state-run companies, that is in PKN Orlen as well," Balicki said previously.

(Source: Ceske Noviny)

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