The court will not manage to begin the trial of ANO leader and former Prime Minister Andrej Babis in the Capi Hnizdo case before the October parliamentary elections, so a new verdict will not be issued by then, judge Jan Sott, who is in charge of the case, told iROZHLAS.cz yesterday.
Along with Babis, the other defendant in the case is his former adviser and current ANO MEP Jana Nagyova. Both have denied guilt.
“In view of the need to provide sufficient time for the parties to the court proceedings to make their statements and to present any evidence, which is necessary both for the preparation of the trial that will have to be ordered in the case, and for preserving and respecting the defendants’ right to defend themselves, and in view of the time available to the court panel, it can already be confirmed that the trial in this case will not be ordered before 3 October 2025,” said Sott, who is chairman of the Prague Metropolitan Court.
The elections to the lower house of the Czech parliament will be held on 3-4 October.
Judge Sott added that he had already studied the order by which the appeals High Court annulled the acquittal of both Babis and Nagyova in June. It will now be possible to submit further evidence.
In an interview with Deník.cz daily yesterday, President Petr Pavel said he believed the case said a lot about the state of the Czech justice system.
“If we are not able to bring a case to a conclusion, no matter what, in a period of less than a few years, then of course, it becomes a farce that is being abused by all sides,” he said. He added that he would like to see the case closed soon, so as not to be a constant trigger to provoke “various discussions that only create negative emotions.”
Sott has already acquitted Babis and Nagyova twice. But in June, the High Court overturned the acquittal and ruled that both defendants had committed the crimes of subsidy fraud and harming the EU’s financial interests.
The public prosecutor in the Capi Hnizdo case claims that Babis arranged for the removal of the Farma Capi Hnizdo company from the Agrofert holding and the sale of shares to his children and his partner at the end of 2007 and in early 2008. According to the prosecutor, Babis took these steps so the company would seemingly meet the conditions to obtain a CZK 50 million subsidy for small- and medium-sized enterprises, while Nagyova successfully applied for the subsidy.
Babis has long denied guilt, saying he believes that it is a political trial. He described the High Court’s decision as completely absurd, misleading and expedient.
According to the pre-election polls, Babis’s ANO is the clear favourite to win the upcoming general election, so Babis will almost certainly sit in the new Chamber of Deputies, and the court will have to ask the lower house for a fourth time to release him for criminal prosecution.
