Rijeka Mayor Vojko Obersnel has said that it is all the same to him in which city he will prove his innocence and the absurdity of charges pressed against him over alleged wrongdoing in contracts between the city of Rijeka and the Trznice Rijeka fresh produce market operator.
Commenting Chief State Prosecutor Mladen Bajic's decision to transfer the case from the Rijeka County Prosecutor's Office to the County Prosecutor's Office in Osijek, Obersnel said on Tuesday that he had not favoured anyone, including Trznice Rijeka, and expressed surprise at the transfer of the case to Osijek.
"The Rijeka County Prosecutor's Office did not deserve such humiliation," Obersnel said.
Obersnel and two other officials in the Rijeka city government and one executive in the Trznice Rijeka company are suspected of having abused their powers and embezzled HRK 80.8 million from the city budget since 2000 in order to ensure illegal gain for Trznice Rijeka. The company was allowed to manage the city-owned real estate, with the city authorities having bypassed the procedure of inviting bids for concessions, according to the charges pressed by the police.
Later on Tuesday, Bajic launched a procedure to relieve of duty the head of the Rijeka County Prosecutor's Office, Doris Hrast, the Office of the Chief State Prosecutor (DORH) stated.
Hrast is suspected of negligent performance of his duties, according to a brief statement from DORH.
According to media reports, Bajic holds Hrast responsible for failing to inform him on time about the police charges in the Trznice Rijeka case.
According to the media, the police first pressed charges in this case as early as 2008, but the police report lay "forgotten" in the drawers of Hrast's office until a month ago.
