Police make fresh request of immunity committee

The police has asked the lower house to strip deputy Bohuslav Svoboda, former mayor of Prague, of his immunity, to enable further criminal prosecution linked to the former mayor’s involvement in the city’s Opencard.

Svoboda was earlier charged with misuse of public funds and violating the law on public tenders. The deal on the multi-purpose card was found to have been hugely disadvantageous for Prague City Hall.

Svoboda was served a suspended two year sentence in connection with the case, and appealed the verdict, before regaining parliamentary immunity in the elections.

The lower house has already received a similar request as regards ANO leader Andrej Babiš and his deputy chair Jaroslav Faltýnek, who were charged on suspicion of EU subsidy fraud earlier this year.