Man Accused of Attack on Fico Denied Release from Custody by STS

        Bratislava, August 23 (TASR) - The judge presiding over the preliminary proceedings of the Specialised Criminal Court (STS) in the case of the assassination attempt on Prime Minister Robert Fico (Smer-SD) rejected on Friday a request from the accused Juraj C. [name abbreviated due to legal reasons] to be released from custody, spokeswoman for the Prosecutor-General's Office Zuzana Drobova told TASR on Friday, adding that the judge complied with a motion of a prosecutor of the Prosecutor-General's Office and expanded the grounds for custody of the accused.
        "The judge also expanded the grounds for the accused's custody to include those coming under Article 71(2) of the Penal Code, because the accused is being prosecuted for the crime of a terrorist attack," said Drobova.
        Juraj C. shot Prime Minister Fico five times after an away-from-home cabinet meeting in the town of Handlova (Trencin region) on May 15. He was first charged with attempted premeditated murder. At the beginning of July, the legal qualification was changed, and the accused is now being prosecuted for a terrorist attack.