A ‘Murder That Never Happened’ Still Haunts Slovakia

It may read like a cheap thriller, but for the outside world these events helped support then-US secretary of state Madeleine Albright's claim that Slovakia had become a "black hole in the heart of Europe" under Meciar. Inside the country, they helped stir opposition to a regime that, having taken power in the wake of Communism's collapse and Czechoslovakia's divorce, was well on its way to building a mafia state.

But with the perpetrators yet to be brought to justice, it's hard not to wonder about the impact that Remias' murder has had on Slovak democracy and the rule of law over the last 27 years, especially in light of the first murder of a journalist in the country's history in 2018 and the subsequent arrests of a swathe of top public officials in a series of investigations that revealed the capture of the state by organised crime.

Michal Kovac Jr (right) receives state honour on behalf of his late father, the first president of the Slovak Republic Michal Kovac, from President Zuzana Caputova on January 1, 2023. PHOTO TASR - Pavol Zachar Spies and mobsters

In August 1995, Michal Kovac Jr, son of the president, was kidnapped, taken to Austria where he was due to testify in a fraud case centred on the company Technopol, and dumped outside a police station. Few failed to link the abduction to Meciar, of whom President Michal Kovac was a fierce critic.

During the subsequent investigation, Oskar Fegyveres, a former officer of the Slovak Information Service (SIS) intelligence agency, confessed that he had taken part in the kidnapping. He claimed it was organised by Ivan Lexa, head of the SIS and Meciar's right-hand man.

Fearing for his safety before he could testify, Fegyveres fled the country. However, he remained in touch with...