Juraj Cintula, who shot and seriously injured Prime minister of Slovakia Robert Fico last year,attends hearings at the Specialized Criminal Court in Banska Bystrica, Slovakia, Tuesday, Oct.
Juraj Cintula, centre, who shot and seriously injured Prime minister of Slovakia Robert Fico last year, attends hearings at the Specialized Criminal Court in Banska Bystrica, Slovakia, Tuesday, Oct.
Juraj Cintula, who shot and seriously injured Prime minister of Slovakia Robert Fico last year, is convoyed at the Specialized Criminal Court in Banska Bystrica, Slovakia, Tuesday, Oct.
FILE -Juraj Cintula, center, is escorted to the Specialized Criminal Court in Banská Bystrica, Slovakia, July 8, 2025, for a trial over last year’s attempted assassination of Slovakia’s populist Prime Minister Robert Fico.
PRAGUE () — A court in Slovakia on Tuesday convicted a man of a terror attack and sentenced him to 21 years in prison over last year’s attempted assassination of the country’s populist Prime Minister Robert Fico.
Juraj Cintula opened fire on Fico on May 15, 2024, as the prime minister greeted supporters following a government meeting in the town of Handlová, about 140 kilometers (85 miles) northeast of the capital of Bratislava.
Cintula, 72, was arrested immediately after the attack and remanded in custody.
When questioned by investigators, he rejected the accusation of being a “terrorist.”.
Fico was shot in the abdomen and was taken from Handlová to a hospital in the nearby city of Banská Bystrica.
He underwent a five-hour surgery, followed by another two-hour operation two days later.
Cintula has claimed his motive for the shooting was that he disagreed with government policies.
The political importance lies in whether the issue moves from public comment into formal action, party response, court record, election authority notice or administrative decision.
