Dead Body Found in Danube River Identified as Martin Filko

Bratislava/Dobrohost, April 13 (TASR) – A dead body that was found on Wednesday in the Danube River near the village of Dobrohost in Dunajska Streda district (Trnava region) has been identified as belonging to missing Financial Policy Institute (IFP) director Martin Filko, Martina Kredatusova of the Regional Police Corps Directorate in Trnava has confirmed for TASR.

Kredatusova told TASR earlier on Wednesday that rescuers had found a dead body in the Danube, but its identity was unknown at that time.

The IFP director and Finance Ministry’s chief economist had been missing since March 28, when his kayak capsized in the Danube in Bratislava. Filko was accompanied by another man, who was rescued.

Filko, who was 35, took over the top post at IFP in May 2012. He advised current Finance Minister Peter Kazimir and former minister Jan Pociatek. He also served as an advisor to former prime minister Iveta Radicova (2010-12).

The economist was well known thanks to his reform regarding the setting of prices for medicines, which brought significant savings. A few days after the March 5 general election Filko, along with economists Ludovit Odor and Stefan Kiss, presented an initiative called ‘The Best of All Possible Worlds – Value for Money in Slovak Public Policies’.