Fugitive businessman Krejčíř ruled not guilty of fraud by Ostrava court

Fugitive businessman Radovan Krejčíř has been acquitted of loan fraud by an Ostrava Court. Mr Krejčíř, alongside business partner Miroslav Řehounek, was charged with acquiring a 20-million-crown loan illegally, and with no intention of repaying it, some 13 years ago. But on Wednesday, the judge presiding over the trial said that the two men were innocent, and that the case was a matter of business law, not criminal law. Mr Krejčíř was tried in absentia, as he currently lives in South Africa. The Czech government is seeking to have him extradited back to Prague, where he awaits prosecution in a string of other fraud cases.

Author: Rosie Johnston