Suspect in Slovak PM shooting makes first court appearance

PEZINOK, Slovakia — Slovak Prime Minister Robert Fico’s condition was stable but serious Saturday as the man accused of trying to assassinate him faced his first court appearance.

Two hours of surgery Friday to remove dead tissue from Fico’s multiple gunshot wounds “contributed to a positive prognosis,” Health Minister Zuzana Dolinkova said outside F. D. Roosevelt University Hospital in Banska Bystrica, where Fico was taken by helicopter after the shooting.

Fico, 59, was attacked as he greeted supporters following a government meeting Wednesday in the former coal mining town of Handlova. The suspect was tackled to the ground and arrested.

Fico’s condition is still too grave to transport him to the capital, Bratislava, Defense Minister Robert Kalinak said.

The update on Fico’s health was issued as the man accused of attempting to assassinate him made his first court appearance, according to Slovak state media.

Prosecutors were seeking an order from Slovakia’s Specialized Criminal Court to detain the suspect.

Prosecutors told police not to publicly identify the man or release other details about the case, but unconfirmed media reports said he was a 71-year-old retiree known as an amateur poet who may have once worked as a mall security guard in the country’s southwest.

Government authorities gave details that matched that description. They said the suspect didn’t belong to any political groups, although the attack itself was politically motivated.

The courthouse in Pezinok, a small town outside Bratislava, was guarded by officers wearing balaclavas and carrying rifles. News media were not allowed in, and reporters were kept behind a gate outside.

Police on Friday had taken the suspect to his home in the town of Levice and seized a computer and some documents, Markiza, a Slovak television station, reported. Police didn’t comment.

World leaders have condemned the attack and offered support for Fico and Slovakia.

Fico has long been a divisive figure in Slovakia and beyond. His return to power last year on a pro-Russia, anti-American platform led to worries among fellow European Union and NATO members that he would abandon his country’s pro-Western course, particularly on Ukraine.
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