Former Deputy Prime Minister and Economy Minister Damir Polancec, who is suspected of defrauding the Podravka food company of HRK 75 million, has been remanded in investigative custody for one month, whereas another suspect in the case, lawyer Zoran Markovic, has been released, a Zagreb County Court investigating judge decided on Wednesday.
Polancec was arrested on Tuesday morning and was held in police custody until today's hearing when investigating judge Kresimir Devcic upheld the motion by the national anti-corruption investigative agency USKOK to remand the suspect in custody for fear that he might influence witnesses.
Polancec's lawyer Anto Nobilo told reporters that they would not appeal the detention order, adding that his client might be released earlier if all witnesses were interviewed.
Asked by the press whether there were witnesses from Hungary in this case, the lawyer said that he could not answer that question, adding that reporters were obviously well informed.
In response to questions why Polancec was handcuffed during his transfer from detention to the investigating judge, Nobilo said that this was usual procedure.
Lawyer Rajko Coguric, who represented the suspected lawyer Zoran Markovic, said he was satisfied with the judge's decision that there was no danger of Markovic tampering with witnesses.
Polancec, the highest state official to be sent behind the bars so far, will join Zdravko Sestak, Podravka's former CEO, in Zagreb's Remetinec prison.
Sestak has been in custody for more than five months. The other suspects in the case have been in the meantime released.
Lawyer Zoran Markovic is a former director of the Fima Ami company registered in Malta, to which the Fima company from Varazdin transferred a 10.6 percent stake in Podravka. One of Fima Ami's owners is Milan Horvat, who was arrested with five other people for alleged wrongdoing in Podravka in an anti-corruption operation in October last year.
According to the media, Markovic participated in negotiations on management rights in the Croatian oil company INA which Polancec conducted on behalf of the Croatian government. It is speculated that in exchange for control of management rights in INA, the Hungarian OTP bank used EUR 34 million deposited in it by the Hungarian oil company MOL to close a loan which Fima had taken from Merrill Lynch to buy 10.6 per cent of Podravka shares.
The police suspect Markovic of having incited Sestak to abuse his office while concluding agreements on the matter.
