‘Judas’ Fico’s government should have supported Ukraine, says shooting suspect – POLITICO

A witness quoted in the court’s ruling claimed he heard Cintula say “hostile and malicious things” about Fico and that he was “troubled by how (Fico) was behaving towards Russia and Hungary and that he had good relations with them.”

The court document shows that on May 13 – two days before the attack – Cintula decided he would “take revenge on this government for its policies by injuring the Prime Minister” using a gun he had legally owned since 1992. The weapon was a 9-millimeter pistol a Czech-made CZ 75, which Cintula carried in a rear holster attached to his belt, along with two magazines of 10 rounds each.

Cintula told authorities that he had waited an hour for a Cabinet meeting on May 15 until Fico emerged from the building and approached a small crowd standing behind a barricade in the city’s main square. He said he fired into the right side of the prime minister’s abdomen as Fico shook hands from a distance of two meters: “Even a blind man would have hit (the target),” the court document said.

The attacker added that he knew Fico could die, but was willing to take the risk because “he is socially sensitive and what is happening in society irritates him very much.”

Cintula said he acted alone and did not tell anyone about his intentions. “He did what he intended to do,” the court document reads. “He realizes that his behavior was unacceptable and that he should not have hurt the victim but instead gave him the book that he had bought for him and had ready.”

The judge left Cintula in custody, ruling there was a risk he might try to attack Fico again.

If convicted, he faces a sentence of 25 years to life in prison.