They often discussed how much they enjoy playing with power and influence. “This is your life, you’re a dragon. That’s our adrenaline, playing games and chemistry. It’s one big madhouse, “Miroslav Pelta told his ally Simona Kratochvílová in a secret apartment in the center of Prague. The words caught the wiretaps.
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More than three and a half years have passed since then. In the meantime, the former chairman of the Football Association of the Czech Republic and the former deputy minister of education received a summons on the dock due to suspicions of machinations with sports subsidies. They will meet again on Monday, this time at the Municipal Court in Prague. And it will be – in Pelt’s words – a real adrenaline rush.
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An exciting legal battle is expected. In the first round of June, Kratochvílová was absent from the court. It is primarily she who, according to investigators, abused his official powers and violated his duties in the administration of other people’s property.
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If she wanted to reduce and blur her role in the case, she de facto has only one chance: to point politically higher – that is, to her then superior, the Minister of Education Kateřina Valachová (ČSSD). It will be just as important, as he puts it, in the conversations with Pelt, who recorded the trapped microphones during their meetings in Pelt’s conspiracy apartment.
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That is why it is eagerly expected when and with what Kratochvílová will appear in court. The list reports that the ex-deputy is going to court on Monday. “I think I’ll come and see you there,” she told the newsroom.
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According to the List of Reports, in recent months it has changed its lawyers in order to change the strategy of its defense. “I wouldn’t leave it until Monday,” she didn’t want to give away more details on Friday.
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What is the Pelta case about?
The indictment of the former chairman of the Football Association of the Czech Republic (FACR) Miroslav Pelt is accused of four different criminal offenses, including bribery and incitement to abuse of power. He faces up to 12 years in prison.
Prosecutor Ondřej Trčka claims that Pelta, despite his mistress, then Deputy Minister Simona Kratochvílová, received behind-the-scenes information about the distribution of subsidies. Together, they allegedly influenced the process in favor not only of the FACR, but also of people with whom it was worthwhile for Pelt to maintain good relations.
Kratochvílová is also accused, as is the head of the Czech Sports Union, Miroslav Jansta.
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Waiting for the minister
In the coming days, Kateřina Valachová, the ex-minister and current vice-chairwoman of the CSSD parliamentary group, should also appear in court as a witness. It will depend on how many hours the Kratochvílová ascent takes.
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Another of the defendants, Miroslav Jansta, is curious about her and Valach’s views of the case. “I hope that with the submission of further testimony, it will turn out that we did nothing illegal, that the Minister also knew about our actions,” said the Chairman of the Czech Sports Union (ČUS) in Seznam Reports.
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Jansta and Pelta critically joined the Minister in the first court race in June. “Mrs. Valachová did nothing herself, she handed everything over to Simona Kratochvílová. They lived together with Kratochvílová, they understood each other beautifully, “Pelta said in court. “If Mrs. Valach hadn’t been ashamed to say what it was like, we wouldn’t have been here. She knew everything. She told me: I know everything, I know everything, Simona told me everything, “added Jansta.
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Valach called their words false. In response to their appearance in court, she also wrote an article on her blog, announcing that she would explain various circumstances in court. “Therefore, I refrained from all reactions to the distortion of facts and to the outrageous fabrications that came up again and again. I also left without comment some escaped parts of wiretaps and many complete lies, which in some waves flooded Czech websites, printed newspapers and television, ” she wrote in the text.
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The nature of the relationship between Kratochvílová and Valachová will be a topic that will be discussed with the court in the coming days and weeks. Why? In order for the court to find out to what extent the Minister could (not) know about what was happening around her deputy.
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In June, Pelta characterized the relationship of the above women as very close.
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“I paid for the apartment on Senovážné náměstí. For some purpose I don’t want to talk about. It was ordered by a girl from FACR, but I paid for it all the time. Simona Kratochvílová lived with Katka Valachová, but then the Minister of Social Democracy told them, so spectacular, it doesn’t matter that it doesn’t go on like this anymore and a media attack is about to take place on them. And so Simona had to move out of Katka every day. So she called me to be a mess. And I offered her the apartment. She paid me the rent for it, “said the former head of the FACR.
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Valach disagreed with his words at all. “They are lies and they are pathetic lies. I had no ‘common household’ with Deputy Kratochvílová. And I will be happy to explain in court why she could use part of the service apartment of the Ministry of Education for a certain period of time, “the ex-minister defended herself.
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Diesel or gasoline?
It is certain that they were bound by a work bond. Since September 2014, they have met at the Office of the Government in the legislative section, from where in June 2015 Valachová – already as Minister of Education – brought in several deputies. Kratochvílová then became the director of the cabinet, which is usually the closest person in the resort to the minister. A year later, Kratochvílová was the deputy for sports.
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The wiretaps collected by the police at the turn of 2016 and 2017 during the monitoring of Pelt’s apartment in the center of the metropolis can tell a lot about the relationship between Kratochvílová and Valachová. It can be expected that Valachová and part of the defense will downplay their importance, with Pelta and Kratochvílová inventing, exaggerating and speculating.
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Both often puzzled over the minister’s political future. However, they themselves admitted that Valachová knows about all the behind-the-scenes “plots”. “She’s our partner, she just doesn’t know,” Pelta once remarked. Kratochvílová agreed: “You got it right !!! I have the option of helping the minister to the maximum, but then I can be without her. I don’t want another term with her. I guess you understand. We need to make her Minister of Justice. “
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Pelt’s words showed that he lacked greater political experience with Valachová. “I will do not 100 percent for her election, but 1,000 percent. I don’t like losses, I feel like part of her family, only she has to show us at least a little bit of her emotions… She is incomprehensible, unclear. You don’t know if he’s with you or against you. Whether it runs on diesel or petrol, “Pelta explained to his ally.
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In February 2017, Kratochvílová also wrote to Miroslav Janst that it was necessary to work politically on Valachová. “The Minister must be the Minister of Justice. Must. The whole of Kazakhstan has talked about it. She plans, looking forward to it. YES, it offered it to itself, “Kratochvílová wrote to the head of the Czech Sports Union.
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Jansta and Pelta were afraid that Valachová would blow up politically by leaving the CSSD. But as we write a few paragraphs below, Valachová refuses that she ever plans to join the YES coalition movement.
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Fear of children
In connection with Valachová, Pelta and Kratochvílová dealt not only with politics, but also with issues of a more personal nature – specifically housing. At the turn of 2016 and 2017, Kratochvílová moved away from Valachová. The deputy went to live with Pelt in his Prague apartment. Investigators believe that Pelta’s form was a form of bribe for the deputy, who in turn was to help him lobby for subsidies for selected sports clubs.
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Valachová confirmed that the situation at the turn of 2016 and 2017 worsened, which she said she wanted to leave politics. According to her, the role was played by the increasing pressure on her person and family.
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“It is true that at the turn of 2016 and 2017, the media campaign against me continued and a lot of ugly things appeared on social networks. In January 2017, it got so far that I started to worry about the safety of children. The police assessed my concerns as justified and the result was almost half a year of police protection for my daughters. And yes, the fact is that for that reason, I talked to Deputy Kratochvílová (and several other colleagues) about leaving my full politics and returning to the profession of lawyer, “the ex-minister wrote on her Facebook profile.
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She then condemned the trio of Pelta, Jansta and Kratochvílová for their “stories” on recordings. “I was worried about the children. What the defendants Kratochvílová, Jansta and Pelta talked about and how they speculated about it, I learned only a few months from the wiretaps that the police allowed me during the investigation of the case. These wiretaps really freed me from all illusions about these people and the procedures they were willing to resort to, “she added.
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The courts should now shed light on how it all really was.
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