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Nitra Regional Councillor Murdered, Lipsic Insists on Investigation
Saturday 10 July 2010 Zoom in | Print page
Nitra, July 10 (TASR) - Interior Minister Daniel Lipsic said on Saturday that he will insist on a thorough investigation of police activities between the attack on Nitra regional councillor Laszlo Basternak (ethnic-Hungarian SMK) that occurred in March and his murder in Hurbanovo on Friday evening.
Basternak was murdered by an unknown perpetrator in front of his house in the southern-Slovak town of Hurbanovo. This wasn't the first assault on the former mayor of Hurbanovo and current chief supervisor of the local authority, as an unknown offender attempted to shoot him dead in March as he was taking his dog out.
"I was already behind the gate of my yard, when an around 30-year-old man approached me, without saying any single word directed his gun at me and fired. The bullet hit the gate and got stuck there, however, and this saved my life," said Basternak after the attack in March, adding that the incident was obviously related to his political activities. He claimed that he had been receiving threatening letters for some time, and announced that he will ask the police for protection.
Lipsic informed that Basternak refused the protection after he was told about related limitations to his free movement.
Meanwhile, the police declined to comment on Friday's assault. TASR was only told that the case has been taken up by Police Presidium's Office for Fight Against Organised Crime.
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