BRATISLAVA, April 13, (WEBNOVINY) — The main trial of President of the Slovak Deaflympics Committee Jaromir Ruda and Kosice-based notary public Stanislav Furda started at the Senate of the District Court in Banska Bystrica on Wednesday. Both are charged with particularly serious crime of defrauding 1.6-million euros that were designated for the Winter Deaflympics 2011 to be held in Slovakia.
According to the prosecutor, Ruda and Furda defrauded EUR 1.6 million; the money came from a sponsoring Slovak firm and was supposed to be used within preparation of organizing the deaflympics. In April 2008, Furda was given SKK 52 million for safekeeping. According to the prosecution, based on agreement with Ruda, the notary transferred to various accounts and withdrew cash together in value of SKK 48.5 million and in the agreed-on deadline he paid back only SKK 3.5 million. Ruda as well as Furda claim to be innocent. The notary stated that he did not defraud the money as he “sent the money to the accounts according the Ruda’s orders”.
In February, Ruda was charged with an 11-million euro fraud by the Office for Fight Against Corruption and judge of a Specialized Criminal Court put him in pre-trial custody. According to the police, Ruda fraudulently borrowed ten million euro from at least four companies for financing the 17th Winter Deaflympics Games in the High Tatras. He neither returned the money, nor provided documentation on its use. In 2010, Ruda also fraudulently obtained money from member associations of the International Committee of Sports for the Deaf (ICSD). They sent him at least one million euro, which Ruda did not use for the purposes declared. How he used this money is subject of further investigation. For these charges, he could be sentenced to a prison term of ten to fifteen years.
The 17th winter Deaflympics were supposed to start at Strbske Pleso in the High Tatras mountains on February 18. After the Winter Deaflympics organizing committee, led by Ruda, failed to provide financing for the event in spite of repeated promises, the ICSD decided to cancel the event a week before its beginning.