Eleven people, including several children, died on August 8 in a fire in a panel house in Bohumín in the Karviná region. The article stated that the victims and the alleged perpetrator were Roma and that the author wrote about the dead as “harmful” and “parasites”.
The article appeared on the Vlastenecké noviny server the day after the fire. Although the deputy mayor of Bohumín, Igor Bruzl (ČSSD), had previously said that the dead and the perpetrator were not members of any of the minorities, the server wrote about the dead as “gypsies”. The police immediately confirmed that they were dealing with a racist article.
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The accusation also applies to other acts
According to Monday’s police statement, the accusation does not only apply to the text about the Bohumín fire, but also to other acts that the police have not yet specified. According to server Manipulátoři.cz Racist and xenophobic articles have repeatedly appeared on the Vlastenecké noviny website.
“The man started committing criminal activity in the middle of last year,” Antonín Řezníček, the deputy director of the Ostrava police, told the accused. According to him, the man commented on various events. “He was very sophisticated. He changed names and abbreviations. He also used social networks to disseminate his texts, “the police officer explained, adding that this very behavior complicated the investigation of criminal investigators.
In the texts, the author also threatened members of the government and the police
“There are dozens of cases in which he commented derogatoryly on events in the world or in the Czech Republic. For example, he approved of someone’s death. In the texts, he even threatened state authorities, police officers or members of the government, “he said.
Finally, the men were charged with four crimes – defamation of a nation, race, ethnic or other group of persons, incitement to hatred against a group of persons or restriction of their rights and freedoms, threats to act on a public authority and threats to act on an official. During a house search, police officers seized a large number of documents. Everything will be evaluated, for example whether the texts do not have extremist content. These were, for example, books.
Forgiven rent
Bohumín City Council, meanwhile, on Monday approved the waiver of the monthly rent for the residents of the tower. “The city council approved the rent waiver for August in the total amount of 227,000 crowns for all housing units, regardless of whether they were damaged or not. The tenants experienced trauma, they had to be evacuated, their electricity and gas did not work, “said Bohumín Deputy Mayor Igor Bruzl (ČSSD).
The councilors assigned a replacement apartment to four tenants from the burned-out house. In two cases the assignment is temporary, in two it is permanent. For the other eight households, the extraordinary allocation of a replacement apartment will be on the agenda at the moment when more extensive repairs begin in their apartment. “Bohumín owns 4,300 flats. It reaffirms how crucial it was years ago the decision not to privatize the housing stock. Today, thanks to this, we immediately have alternative housing available for our tenants, “added the mayor Petr Vícha (ČSSD).
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