Zagreb County Court will hear the trial of Božidar Kalmeta, the former HDZ minister, on November 23, 2023. The trial is related to two separate affairs: the Fimi media affair and the HAC-Remorker affair. A retrial was ordered by the Supreme Court last year after an earlier acquittal was deemed illegal.
The prosecution alleges that Kalmeta shared large sums of money with his associates from road maintenance and construction companies. Two of his associates, Stjepko Boban and Damir Kezele, were previously sentenced. However, unlike claims made in the indictment, the prosecutor has argued that Kalmeta did not organize a group to extract money. Other individuals accused along with Kalmeta were found not guilty as well, although the prosecution appealed the decision in the Supreme Court.
The remorker affair also involved other individuals who admitted to wrongdoing. The financial director of HAC and other individuals involved in this affair have already been convicted for their roles in it.
Kalmeta has denied the accusations against him, claiming that he is a victim of political persecution. The defense argues that admitting guilt under the law does not necessarily equate to actual criminal wrongdoing. Despite this claim, it remains to be seen what evidence will be presented at trial to prove or disprove Kalmeta’s innocence.