“Železný recounts a life-threatening encounter with a policeman” – News List

Czech TV presenter Jakub Železný apologized on Tuesday for stopping his car in an inappropriate place and subsequently getting into a verbal conflict with a police officer.

The incident happened a few months ago, the Prague Municipal Police published the edited recording on their social networks last week on Thursday.

According to the spokeswoman of the city police, Irena Seifertová, the intervening officer was on routine patrol, no one called him to the scene. “He walked by, noticed him and was doing his job,” she said.

In an interview for Seznam Zprávy, Jakub Železný explains what actually happened.

When did the whole incident take place?

I’m not sure, but it was a few months ago.

Police said it was late last year. So does that match?

City police, please, that’s a difference, I’m sorry. But yes, it is possible. It was definitely the turn of the year.

However, the city police did not publish the recording until Thursday last week. Do you not see a possible connection in this with your possible candidacy for the post of CEO of Czech Television?

Don’t be mad, I have no idea. I honestly don’t care at all. Let them publish what they see fit. Really do not know. I guess I don’t live in such a world and I don’t think in such constructions. I can think something about it, but I certainly won’t blame anyone for anything like that, not really. I wrote my statement on Twitter.

Does your apology also apply to the city police?

Don’t be angry, you don’t want me to explain what has already been explained. I wrote something, he apologized for his behavior. That’s the end of it for me.

On Twitter, you criticize that the video is edited. What is missing in it?

I was honestly a bit taken aback when the spokeswoman wrote that I wrote somewhere that it was “purposefully” cut. I don’t use that word, I don’t know what it means. So she wasn’t telling the truth. Nowhere did I say it was edited on purpose. I said it was edited. She herself said it was edited. It’s edited.

And what happened in the beginning?

Don’t be mad, it’s in that tweet. I’m sorry, I don’t want to escalate this. That tweet says it very succinctly and clearly. The way the officer approached me is described in that tweet in one sentence. Only then did he turn on the recording, which they don’t deny either. And then what happened happened, and I apologized for it. Where is the problem?

Could you describe why you stopped at that location?

That’s what I wrote in that tweet too. I just received an email from Professor Martínek, who is a world expert in endoscopy (see box at the end of the article). He was terribly outraged and said to me: “I have now also forwarded you an e-mail, which you can use as you wish. I sent it to your director and the city police director.” Don’t be angry, I won’t say anything more about it.

One more little confusion. Some infer from the video that you refused to take a drug test. But the police say it was negative. How was the test?

From the video it looks like you left without the test.

And isn’t that a little bit of an answer? If we’re not going on the record, I can tell you what I’ve experienced with the city police over the past few years. Why the city police did this, how can I perceive it. But I don’t have any evidence for that at all, because I didn’t actually record the conversations, especially with some police officers, especially in Prague 1. But what I heard about them from their superiors really shocked me.

On the other hand, it doesn’t take anything away from the fact that there are a huge number of honest people among the police officers who put their necks on the line every day. And it doesn’t take anything away from the fact that I should have behaved differently and better. But do you think they would really let me go without the test? By doing so, they are showing something. By doing so, they themselves show that they somehow edited it. I don’t use the word “on purpose”, I say “somehow”.

Have you had a bad experience with the city police?

As? Are you some sort of road pirate?

The city police do not deal with road pirates. The city police deal with small matters that may not be related to traffic at all. For example, when you ask a policeman for help in some really difficult life situation and he refuses you. And you know that this is the constable who is said to be in the district where you have lived all your life, that he is there a little out of patronage and that perhaps even his physical constitution is not quite such that he can help somewhere. You know that a person will then change his mind about contacting the city police and that he already has some perspective on them. Although I’m sorry and I’m sorry.

I repeat again: I also experienced great police officers who were very helpful. But maybe my experience with the state police is a hundred times better. But I say again: I should have – despite the situation – behaved differently here. I should have behaved better.

I should have handled the absolutely fatal life situation that arose at that moment better. I couldn’t handle her better. It’s my fault, I apologize for that too.