The trial in the case of the murders of investigative journalist Ján Kuciak and his fiancée Martina Kušnírová will start with a public session on December 19, the Specialised Criminal Court announced on Wednesday. According to the indictment, five people are being charged with six crimes, including two murders. All the accused suspects, Marián Kočner, Alena Zsuzsová, Tomáš Szabó, Miroslav Marček and Zoltán Andruskó, are currently in custody.
The indictment indicates that Kočner ordered Kuciak's murder in 2017 from Alena Zsuzsová who hired the other three suspects and payed a minimum of €70.000. The investigation file has more than 25,000 pages and dozens of attachments, including funds and valuables. The indictment has 93 pages. In addition to the murder of Kuciak and Kušníčová, Szabó and Marček are also charged with the murder of a businessman, Peter Molnár from Kollárovo, who died in 2016.
Kuciak and Kušnírová were murdered on February 21 2018 in their house in the village of Veľká Mača, Trnava Region. Subsequently, mass protests across Slovakia took place. In reaction to them, then Prime Minister Robert Fico stepped down and was replaced by Peter Pellegrini. Moreover, then Interior Minister Robert Kaliňák, head of Police Corps Tibor Gašpar and several other politicians and people in the police and the justice system left their posts.
