The U.S. Treasury Department has added controversial businessman Marian Kočner, who has been charged with the murder of journalist Jan Kuciak among other crimes, to its global Magnitsky sanctions list, states the Treasury Department's website. The sanctions apply not only to Kočner as an individual but also to at least six 'entities' owned or controlled by him, most notably hotels in the popular Donovaly holiday resort area. In 2012, the United States Congress approved the so-called Magnitsky Act, a bipartisan bill intended to punish Russian officials deemed responsible for the death of Russian tax accountant Sergei Magnitsky in a Moscow prison. Since 2016, the legislation has enabled the U.S. Government to impose sanctions on those seen as human rights violators, who might as a result see their assets frozen and entry to the United States denied. The Treasury department has chosen the 10th of December, which is International Human Rights Day, as the date to announce fresh sanctions against individuals targeted for alleged violations.
At a Bratislava press conference on Tuesday, U.S. Embassy spokesman Griffin Rozell explained why Marian Kočner was included on the sanctions list.
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Kočner is among 18 individuals designated as human rights violators worldwide who were placed on the Treasury's sanctions list on Tuesday. For more information visit the website of the U.S. Treasury Department.
