Slovakia's central bank chief convicted of bribery and fined $225,000
BRATISLAVA, Slovakia (AP) — Slovakia's central bank chief, who is a member of the European Central Bank committee that decides monetary policy for 20 countries, was convicted of bribery and fined 200,000 euros ($225,000) on Thursday.
The verdict against central bank Gov. Peter Kažimír was issued by Judge Milan Cisarik at the country's Special Criminal Court in Pezinok.
Kažimír's attorneys argued that he should have been acquitted because of the recent changes in Slovakia's penal code, which reduced punishment for corruption and that recently ended a number of corruption cases and trials.
Kažimír wasn't present at the court. He said in a statement that he would appeal. His six-year term in office expires on Sunday.
Kažimír was accused of paying a bribe of 48,000 euros ($54,000) at the turn of the year in 2017-18 to the head of the country's tax office in connection with a tax audit of several private companies.
At the time, Kažimír was acquiring a luxury villa located in an upscale neighborhood of Bratislava, the capital, from the owner of the companies.
Kažimír, who pleaded not guilty, had previously said that he considered the charges to be illegal and fabricated.
The case dates to when Kažimír served as finance minister in the leftist government of populist Prime Minister Robert Fico from 2012 to 2019. He was a member of Fico's Smer, or Direction, party before taking the central bank job.
Smer lost the 2020 general election and was replaced by a coalition government whose parties campaigned on an anti-corruption ticket.
Since that government took power, a number of people linked to Fico's party faced prosecution in corruption scandals.
Kažimír was the first minister of Fico's government to stand trial.
Slovakia is one of 20 countries that use the euro currency, and Kažimír is a member of the ECB's governing council, its main decision-making body.
A number of people linked to the prime minister's party faced prosecution in corruption scandals.
Fico returned to power for the fourth time in 2023 after his leftist party Smer won the Sept. 30 parliamentary election on a pro-Russia and anti-American platform.
In February 2024, lawmakers loyal to Fico's new coalition government approved changes to the penal code and eliminated the office of the special prosecutor that deals with major crime and corruption.
The legislation faced sharp criticism at home and abroad while thousands of Slovaks repeatedly took to the streets to protest.
The changes include a reduction in punishments for corruption and some other crimes, including the possibility of suspended sentences, and a significant shortening of the statute of limitations.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
UPI
31 minutes ago
- UPI
Mahmoud Khalil offers declaration, describes damages to his life
June 6 (UPI) -- Mahmoud Khalil, the Columbia University graduate detained by the Trump administration in March for deportation over his pro-Palestinian views, offered a public declaration that details what he's experienced since his arrest. In a case document filed Thursday, Khalil listed what he described as the "irreparable harms" he has suffered, which he claimed have affected several parts of his life that "include dignitary and reputational harm, personal and familial hardship, including constant fear for personal safety, continued detention, restrictions on my freedom of expression, and severe damage to my professional future." The declaration, which was made from inside the LaSalle Detention Center in Jena, La., where Khalil has been held since March 9, puts focus on the birth of his son, which happened during his incarceration. "Instead of holding my wife's hand in the delivery room, I was crouched on a detention center floor, whispering through a crackling phone line as she labored alone." Khalil described. "I listened to her pain, trying to comfort her while 70 other men slept around me. When I heard my son's first cries, I buried my face in my arms so no one would see me weep." Khalil described that the first time he saw his son was through a window, and the first time he held him was in an immigration courtroom, to which his wife had to travel ten hours to reach, with their newborn. "I speak to her as often as possible, but these conversations are not private, everything is monitored by the government," Khalil said, which makes it impossible for them to comfortably speak freely. "We leave so much unsaid, and that silence weighs heavily on both of us." Khalil said that not only has the situation been "devastating" for him, but that his wife has dealt with harassment since his arrest. Khalil further described the anguish of seeing Trump administration officials post statements and photos of him on social media that he purports as "accompanied by inflammatory language, grotesque and false accusations, and open celebration of my deportation." Khalil expressed concern for his future as well. He said he was hired by the nonprofit equality-focused Oxfam International group only days before his arrest as a Palestine and Middle East/ North Africa policy advisor, and was scheduled to start work in April, but the job offer was formally revoked. He says "I strongly believe" his arrest and continued detention is the reason for this. He added that should the charges against him stand, "the harm to my professional career would be career-ending." Khalil further worried his arrest would result in a lifetime of "being flagged, delayed, or denied when traveling, applying for visas, or engaging with consular authorities anywhere in the world," and not just him, but his wife and son. His mother had also applied for a visa in March to visit the United States to see their child be born, and although that was approved, the U.S. embassy returned her passport without a stamp, and now her case is under "administrative processing," and remains unapproved. Khalil's elderly father, whom he describes as "severely disabled," lives in Germany, and he ponders whether any country allied with the United States will ever grant him entry should the charges stand. Khalil detailed the allegations under which he has been held for deportation, which not only did he deny as testimony at his May immigration court hearing, at which he purports "The government attorneys did not ask me any questions regarding these issues." However, Khalil maintained his greatest concern of all is a determination by Secretary of State Marco Rubio based on a law that an "alien" can be deported should his presence in the United States "have potentially serious adverse foreign policy consequences." "I understand that the Rubio Determination is not only a ground for deportation, but it is also a bar to entry," said Khalil. "In other words, no matter what happens to the other charge against me, it is the Rubio Determination that will make this country, the country of my wife and child, a country I cannot return to in the future."
San Francisco Chronicle
33 minutes ago
- San Francisco Chronicle
Points of Light, founded by the Bush family, aims to double American volunteerism by 2035
NEW ORLEANS (AP) — The Bush family's nonprofit Points of Light will lead an effort to double the number of people who volunteer with U.S. charitable organizations from 75 million annually to 150 million in 10 years. The ambitious goal, announced in New Orleans at the foundation's annual conference, which concluded Friday, would represent a major change in the way Americans spend their time and interact with nonprofits. It aspires to mobilize people to volunteer with nonprofits in the U.S. at a scale that only federal programs like AmeriCorps have in the past. It also coincides with deep federal funding cuts that threaten the financial stability of many nonprofits and with an effort to gut AmeriCorps programs, which sent 200,000 volunteers all over the country. A judge on Wednesday paused those cuts in some states, which had sued the Trump administration. Jennifer Sirangelo, president and CEO of Points of Light, said that while the campaign has been in development well before the federal cuts, the nonprofit's board members recently met and decided to move forward. 'What our board said was, 'We have to do it now. We have to put the stake in the ground now. It's more important than it was before the disruption of AmeriCorps,'' she said in an interview with The Associated Press. She said the nonprofit aims to raise and spend $100 million over the next three years to support the goal. Points of Light, which is based in Atlanta, was founded by President George H.W. Bush to champion his vision of volunteerism. It has carried on his tradition of giving out a daily award to a volunteer around the country, built a global network of volunteer organizations and cultivated corporate volunteer programs. Speaking Wednesday in New Orleans, Points of Light's board chair Neil Bush told the organization's annual conference that the capacity volunteers add to nonprofits will have a huge impact on communities. 'Our mission is to make volunteering and service easier, more impactful, more sustained," Bush said. "Because, let's be honest, the problems in our communities aren't going to fix themselves.' According to data from the U.S. Census Bureau and AmeriCorps, the rate of participation has plateaued since 2002, with a noticeable dip during the pandemic. Susan M. Chambré, professor emerita at Baruch College who studied volunteering for decades, said Points of Light's goal of doubling the number of volunteers was admirable but unrealistic, given that volunteer rates have not varied significantly over time. But she said more research is needed into what motivates volunteers, which would give insight into how to recruit people. She also said volunteering has become more transactional over time, directed by staff as opposed to organized by volunteers themselves. In making its case for increasing volunteer participation in a recent report, Points of Light drew on research from nonprofits like Independent Sector, the National Alliance for Volunteer Engagement and the Do Good Institute at the University of Maryland. Sirangelo said they want to better measure the impact volunteers make, not just the hours they put in, for example. They also see a major role for technology to better connect potential volunteers to opportunities, though they acknowledge that many have tried to do that through apps and online platforms. Reaching young people will also be a major part of accomplishing this increase in volunteer participation. Sirangelo said she's observed that many young people who do want to participate are founding their own nonprofits rather than joining an existing one. 'We're not welcoming them to our institutions, so they have to go found something,' she said. 'That dynamic has to change.' As the board was considering this new goal, they reached out for advice to Alex Edgar, who is now the youth engagement manager at Made By Us. They ultimately invited him to join the board as a full voting member and agreed to bring on a second young person as well. 'I think for volunteering and the incredible work that Points of Light is leading to really have a deeper connection with my generation, it needs to be done in a way that isn't just talking to or at young people, but really co-created across generations,' said Edgar, who is 21. Karmit Bulman, who has researched and supported volunteer engagement for many years, said she was very pleased to see Points of Light make this commitment. 'They are probably the most well known volunteerism organization in the country and I really appreciate their leadership,' said Bulman, who is currently the executive director of East Side Learning Center, a nonprofit in St. Paul. Bulman said there are many people willing to help out in their communities but who are not willing to jump through hoops to volunteer with a nonprofit. 'We also need to recognize that it's a pretty darn stressful time in people's lives right now,' she said. "There's a lot of uncertainty personally and professionally and financially for a lot of people. So we need to be really, really flexible in how we engage volunteers." ___
Yahoo
34 minutes ago
- Yahoo
South Florida now emerging as the ‘epicenter of housing weakness' — but will it spread to the rest of the US?
Moneywise and Yahoo Finance LLC may earn commission or revenue through links in the content below. Bubbles don't always burst — sometimes they deflate. But the process can still be painful, as some Florida home sellers are now discovering. According to a Bloomberg analysis of Redfin data, the number of contracts to buy homes in Miami, Fort Lauderdale and West Palm Beach dropped in April compared to a year ago, marking the steepest declines among the 50 largest metro areas in the U.S. Thanks to Jeff Bezos, you can now become a landlord for as little as $100 — and no, you don't have to deal with tenants or fix freezers. Here's how BlackRock CEO Larry Fink has an important message for the next wave of American retirees — here's how he says you can best weather the US retirement crisis Nervous about the stock market in 2025? Find out how you can access this $1B private real estate fund (with as little as $10) Notably, pending sales in Miami plunged 23%, while transactions in Fort Lauderdale and West Palm Beach declined by 19% and 14%, respectively. According to Chen Zhao, head of economics research at Redfin, the region is clearly under pressure. 'South Florida is the epicenter of housing market weakness in the United States,' she told Bloomberg. Homes are also sitting on the market much longer than elsewhere. In April, the median time to sell in West Palm Beach and Fort Lauderdale was 83 days, and 81 days in Miami — more than double the national average of 40 days. South Florida saw a historic run-up in prices during the pandemic, with homes routinely selling above asking price. But the tide has turned. In April, the median home sale price across Florida fell 3.2% year over year. And in West Palm Beach, Miami and Fort Lauderdale, nearly 5% of homes sold below asking — compared to just 0.77% nationally. 'I think you're seeing a really long, slow deflation of that bubble,' Zhao said in the Bloomberg analysis, reflecting on the shifting market dynamics. And while Florida may be feeling the pain, Zhao cautions it might not be the only state that ends up struggling: 'The question for the rest of the country is, will this spread? Florida is uniquely bad right now.' Florida's housing market seems to be under pressure, but that doesn't necessarily signal a nationwide collapse. In fact, according to Redfin, the median U.S. home sale price in April was $437,864 — up 1.3% from a year earlier. Zoom out further, and the long-term trend remains clear: Redfin data show U.S. home prices have surged roughly 45% over the past five years. Affordability, however, remains a major challenge due to the imbalance between supply and demand. As Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell acknowledged in a press conference last year, the real issue behind America's housing crisis is clear: 'We have had, and are on track to continue to have, not enough housing.' A June 2024 analysis by Zillow estimates the U.S. housing shortage at 4.5 million homes — a gap that continues to support demand and rental prices in many regions. Meanwhile, many investors view real estate as a time-tested hedge against inflation. As the cost of materials, labor and land rises, property values often follow — and so do rents. This allows landlords to earn income that tends to keep pace with inflation. Of course, with today's high home prices, elevated mortgage rates and an uncertain outlook, jumping into the market might feel daunting. But the good news is, you no longer need to buy a property outright to tap into the benefits of real estate investing. Crowdfunding platforms like Arrived offer an easier way to get exposure to this income-generating asset class. Backed by world class investors like Jeff Bezos, Arrived allows you to invest in shares of rental homes with as little as $100, all without the hassle of mowing lawns, fixing leaky faucets or handling difficult tenants. The process is simple: Browse a curated selection of homes that have been vetted for their appreciation and income potential. Once you find a property you like, select the number of shares you'd like to purchase, and then sit back as you start receiving positive rental income distributions from your investment. Another option is First National Realty Partners (FNRP), which allows accredited investors to diversify their portfolio through grocery-anchored commercial properties, without taking on the responsibilities of being a landlord. With a minimum investment of $50,000, investors can own a share of properties leased by national brands like Whole Foods, Kroger and Walmart, which provide essential goods to their communities. Thanks to Triple Net (NNN) leases, accredited investors are able to invest in these properties without worrying about tenant costs cutting into their potential returns. Simply answer a few questions — including how much you would like to invest — to start browsing their full list of available properties. Read more: Rich, young Americans are ditching the stormy stock market — If you're uneasy about where the U.S. housing market — or the broader economy — is headed, you're not alone. Warnings from top economists and investors are piling up. Nobel Prize–winning economist Paul Krugman has cautioned that a recession could hit the U.S. this year. Meanwhile, Ray Dalio — founder of the world's largest hedge fund, Bridgewater Associates — recently sounded the alarm on 'something worse than a recession.' With soaring national debt, persistent fiscal deficits and rising geopolitical tensions, it's no surprise that markets have been on edge. So where can investors turn for shelter? Dalio points to a familiar safe haven: gold. 'People don't have, typically, an adequate amount of gold in their portfolio,' he told CNBC in February. 'When bad times come, gold is a very effective diversifier.' Long viewed as the ultimate safe haven, gold isn't tied to any single country, currency or economy. It can't be printed out of thin air like fiat money, and in times of economic turmoil or geopolitical uncertainty, investors tend to pile in — driving up its value. Hence why, over the past 12 months, gold prices have surged by more than 40%. One way to invest in gold that also provides significant tax advantages is to open a gold IRA with the help of Priority Gold. Gold IRAs allow investors to hold physical gold or gold-related assets within a retirement account, thereby combining the tax advantages of an IRA with the protective benefits of investing in gold, making it an option for those looking to help shield their retirement funds against economic uncertainties. When you make a qualifying purchase with Priority Gold, you can receive up to $10,000 in silver for free. JPMorgan sees gold soaring to $6,000/ounce — use this 1 simple IRA trick to lock in those potential shiny gains (before it's too late) Are you rich enough to join the top 1%? Here's the net worth you need to rank among America's wealthiest — plus a few strategies to build that first-class portfolio You're probably already overpaying for this 1 'must-have' expense — and thanks to Trump's tariffs, your monthly bill could soar even higher. Here's how 2 minutes can protect your wallet right now Access to this $22.5 trillion asset class has traditionally been limited to elite investors — until now. Here's how to become the landlord of Walmart or Whole Foods without lifting a finger This article provides information only and should not be construed as advice. It is provided without warranty of any kind. Error in retrieving data Sign in to access your portfolio Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data
