Ljubljana Mayor Zoran Jankovic, under investigation as of Thursday on suspicion of economic crimes and corruption in the construction of the Stozice sports centre and mall, has said he is not guilty and that he will not step down either as mayor or as president of Positive Slovenia, a party which won the majority of votes in last year's early parliamentary election.
Speaking on Slovenian Television on Thursday night on the suspicions regarding Stozice, which was built in a public-private partnership between the Municipality of Ljubljana and the Grep company, Jankovic said it made no sense to suspect that the municipality was defrauded in unlawful transactions and that the money ended up in private pockets given that Grep "is facing bankruptcy."
Jankovic described as "pressure" the police investigation in which his sons Jure and Damijan were also suspects, saying they had nothing to do with the Stozice project.
Asked whether it would be appropriate that he resigned as mayor, Jankovic said he would not do it and that his associates in the municipality and the members of his party supported him in that.
Speaking on Slovenian TV, Interior Minister Vinko Gorenak rejected the possibility that the investigation of Jankovic had a political backdrop.
Citing unofficial sources, Slovenian media said that apart from suspecting abuse of office, corruption and the defrauding of the Municipality of Ljubljana in the construction of Stozice, police were investigating Jankovic's sons' companies in Cyprus, possible unlawful transactions, and the operations of companies connected to Jankovic.
Police confirmed that Jankovic and his two sons were released after questioning, as were the three other persons under investigation.
