A Slovakian court has found former President Andrej Kiska guilty of tax fraud and issued a two-year suspended sentence, along with a 15,000 euro (approximately $16,000) fine. Kiska, aged 60, has expressed his intention to appeal the verdict and has maintained his innocence throughout the case.
The charges stem from 2014, when Kiska was a presidential candidate and a successful businessman-turned-philanthropist. The court determined that he unlawfully included tax receipts from his presidential campaign in the financial records of his KTAG family company, despite these activities not being part of the firm’s regular business operations.
Through his associate, Eduard Kuckovsky, KTAG claimed a tax refund of over 155,000 euros (about $165,000). Kuckovsky received a two-year suspended sentence and a 10,000 euro (around $10,600) fine in connection with the case.
Kiska’s presidency marked a period of clashes with then-populist Prime Minister Robert Fico, whose Smer (Direction) party faced corruption scandals. Kiska supported significant street protests that led to the downfall of Fico’s coalition government in 2018, following the murder of an investigative reporter looking into possible government corruption.
Andrej Kiska, known for his pro-Western stance, did not seek re-election for a second five-year term in 2019. It’s worth noting that Robert Fico and his Smer party won the parliamentary election on September 30, eventually forming a new government through a coalition with two other parties.
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