Prosecution of another judge from the police operation “Búrka” (Storm) discontinued

On 23 September 2026, judge Denisa Cviková announced that the criminal prosecution against her for the offence of accepting a bribe had been finally discontinued, as there were sufficient grounds to conclude that she had not committed the act in question. 

The police operation “Búrka” (Storm) was carried out in the early morning hours of 11 March 2020. It was preceded by a resolution on the bringing of charges, issued 9 March 2020, by which a prosecutor of the Special Prosecution Office of the General Prosecutor’s Office of the Slovak Republic brought charges against thirteen judges, one former judge and four other individuals, mainly for the offences of bribery, accepting bribes and interference with the independence of the judiciary.

Judge Denisa Cviková was originally charged with the felony of accepting a bribe. In February 2025, the offence was reclassified as the minor offence of accepting a bribe. 

“Unfortunately, I must once again point out that, in the case of the detained judges, the presumption of innocence was completely disregarded across society, including by its highest-ranking representatives. For years, they were barred from adjudicating cases, and some of them still are,” said Marcela Kosová, President of the Judicial Council. 

A prosecutor of the Bratislava Region Prosecutor’s Office discontinued the criminal prosecution of Denisa Cviková by a resolution dated 29 June 2026. Tomáš Kamenec, the legal representative of the injured company, filed a complaint against the resolution. However, on19 August 2026, the Prosecutor General’s Office of the Slovak Republic dismissed the complaint as unfounded. 

It must be continually emphasized that, to this day, none of the judges charged has been convicted by a final judgment based on evidence examined before a court. On the contrary, after six and a half years, the criminal prosecution of another judge has been discontinued by a final decision. 

“Of course, I must also mention that by the same resolutions the criminal prosecution of former judge Zuzana Murianková was discontinued. In both cases, the lack of evidence was established with several pieces of direct evidence, supported by indirect evidence, weighted in their favour, while only two pieces of indirect evidence weighted against them,” concluded Marcela Kosová.