ZAGREB, February 4, 2019 – The key prosecution witness in the retrial in the INA-MOL bribery case against former Prime Minister Ivo Sanader at Zagreb County Court on Monday repeated his previous testimony, saying that he had received 5 million euro to his company’s account that the Hungarian MOL oil company was to have deposited to be handed over to Sanader.
“In early 2009, Sanader told me that he expected transaction of 10 million euro from MOL and instructed me to see how to arrange the receipt,” Ježić said. After that, nothing happened until May 2009 when, the witness alleged, he saw MOL’s CEO Szolt Hernadi and oil consultant Josip Petrović in Government House who had met with Sanader before him.
Ježić said that in that occasion he told Sanader that “nothing has been agreed to yet,” after which Sanader presumably called Petrović, who returned to the prime minister’s office together with Hernadi. Ježić said that he was in the adjacent room but recognised Petrović’s voice and a few minutes later when they left, Sanader told Ježić that “everything was alright,” and that part of the money would be paid immediately and the rest would be paid by the end of the year.
Two Cyprian companies deposited a total of 5 million euro, Ježić said and added that after Sanader had stepped down and when the media started reporting about the relationship between his government and MOL, Ježić realised what this was about.
He allegedly told Sanader then that he refused to accept the other 5 million euro, which Sanader “took calmly.”
The retrial against Sanader and Hernadi, in absentia, opened on October 23 last year, with Sanader dismissing all the charges, just as he had the first time around. Hernadi had not been charged in the original trial.
More news about the former prime minister Ivo Sanader can be found in the Politics section.
