Jozef Chovanec: Widow and Slovakia appeal decision to drop charges in police violence case
The widow of Jozef Chovanec and the Slovakian state are appealing the decision not to have a trial in the case of Chovanec, a Slovak man who died after being restrained by police at Charleroi Airport in 2018. The charges against all 31 defendants – mainly police officers – were dismissed.
The civil parties had 15 days to appeal the ruling. “We decided to appeal for a very simple reason,” said Lennert Dierickx, one of widow Henrietta Chovancova's lawyers. “We are still convinced that there are sufficient arguments for an appeal and for an in-depth debate during the trial. There is sufficient evidence of guilt in this case.”
Chovanec died on 27 February 2018 at the Marie Curie hospital in Charleroi, where he had been admitted on 24 February after suffering a heart attack. The 38-year-old businessman was due to take a flight from Charleroi to Slovakia but was denied boarding after he misplaced his travel documents. He became aggressive and was arrested.
"We are still convinced that there are sufficient arguments for an appeal and for an in-depth debate during the trial"
In custody, he hit his head against a cell wall dozens of times. While in an agitated state, he was overpowered and forcibly restrained by several police officers. His head was wrapped in a blanket before he was injected with a sedative. CCTV footage of the intervention showed officers smiling and one officer giving a Hitler salute. A reconstruction of the events took place in September 2021.
Hayat Karim, lawyer for three officers who restrained Chovanec in the cell, said her clients “have confidence in the legal system and the judicial authorities”.
“We hope that the appeal decision can be made within a reasonable time, so they can finally turn the page,” she said. “When they entered the cell, they tried to save a man's life. As the forensic experts confirmed, it was not this intervention that caused Mr. Chovanec's death.”
According to the court report, Chovanec died of a brain injury caused by banging his head against the wall. Experts called by lawyers acting for Chovanec’s widow said suffocation was the most likely cause of death.
It is not yet known when the case will be heard by the Indictment Chamber at the Court of Appeal.
Lawyer Alexandre Wilmotte speaks to the press after the decision of the Charleroi Council Chamber in the Chovanec case on 25 September 2024 © BELGA PHOTO ERIC LALMAND
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