Slovak Appeals Court Upholds Ex-President's Sentence

In a significant legal development, a Slovakian appeals court has confirmed former President Andrej Kiska's conviction for tax fraud, but decreased his suspended sentence from two years to one. The decision, rendered by the regional court in Presov, also overturned a 15,000 euro fine and a six-year prohibition on Kiska conducting business. Kiska, who maintains his innocence, has announced plans to challenge the ruling at Slovakia's Supreme Court.

The conviction traces back to 2014, when Kiska was running for president. He was convicted on allegations that he included campaign expenses in the financial records of his family company, KTAG, which allowed the company to claim a tax return of about $168,000. Kiska, a businessman-turned-philanthropist, defeated then-Prime Minister Robert Fico. His tenure was characterized by opposition to Fico and his scandal-plagued Smer party. Kiska declined to run for a second term in 2019. (This story was generated by Newser's AI chatbot. Source: the AP)