Decision questions the legality of reassigning investigator Peter Juhás, amid mounting disputes over the ministry’s handling of anti-corruption police officers.
A prosecutor has moved to block the Interior Ministry’s decision to reassign a senior police officer involved in the investigation of murdered journalist Ján Kuciak, arguing that officials failed to respect whistleblower-protection rules.
The case concerns former investigative team leader Peter Juhás, who has whistleblower status and faces no criminal charges. Nevertheless, the government of Robert Fico placed him on a list of “uncomfortable police officers” linked to the Kuciak case, in which businessman Marián Kočner, associated with Smer, was acquitted. A retrial is due next year after the Supreme Court ruled that the original verdict did not fully assess the evidence.
Having previously worked at the National Crime Agency (NAKA), which the Fico government dismantled in late summer 2024, Juhás was transferred in March 2024 from the Interior Ministry’s police inspectorate to a district post in Levice. The move was ordered by inspectorate chief Branislav Zurian, Juhás’ successor, and approved by Interior Minister Matúš Šutaj Eštok (Hlas). Prosecutors now say the transfer was unlawful because the ministry did not seek mandatory approval from the Whistleblower Protection Office.
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