A large-scale scheme involving document fraud targeting foreigners has been uncovered in Košice, in which high-ranking officials from law enforcement agencies are implicated. An investigator from the Inspection Service (ÚIS) has formally charged Peter Š., the head of the Košice Police Department for Foreigners. The official is suspected of abuse of authority.
Residence Permits for Those Who Were Not Eligible
According to Andrea Dobiášová, a spokesperson for the Inspection Service, evidence gathered during the investigation indicates that the official had, over a long period of time, unjustifiably facilitated the issuance of permanent residence permits to foreign nationals who did not meet the requirements established by law.
“In at least six documented cases, the department head illegally granted permanent residency to citizens of Syria and China,” the ÚIS spokesperson clarified.
In addition, the law enforcement officer is charged with another instance of official negligence or intentional cover-up of violators: he failed to initiate administrative expulsion proceedings against a Canadian citizen, despite the existence of all legal grounds for deportation.
What the official faces
Through his actions, the police unit head effectively granted the foreigners legal status in Slovakia and access to the EU, to which they had no right whatsoever.
For committing a crime involving abuse of authority by a public official, the high-ranking police officer faces a prison sentence of 2 to 5 years. The investigation into the case is ongoing, and authorities are working to identify any other incidents and accomplices.
