Hrnko: Policemen Decided in Advance to Seize My Driving Licence
Bratislava, January 30 (TASR) – Slovak National Party (SNS) vice-chairman Anton Hrnko claimed on Monday that the police patrol that stopped his car and seized his driving licence for an alleged misdemeanour had decided to do so in advance.
At a press conference, Hrnko presented an audio-visual recording from the police car with the officers talking to each other, with the use of profanities, saying that the driver must be drunk, that they had the driver on tape and that they’d take away his driving licence.
According to Hrnko, the police patrol was driving fast without flashing lights and a siren turned on, and so he swerved from the fast lane to the slow lane in front of another car. “If I somehow restricted the driver, it wasn’t intentional. Nevertheless, I certainly didn’t endanger him. My action was provoked by the patrol,” said Hrnko.
The governing Coalition MP asked several further questions, including whether the patrol was supposed to be on this specific road, or whether it was sent there purposefully. “They were talking to each other in advance about what they’d do,” he noted.
Hrnko allegedly asked several questions as part of the misdemeanour proceedings, but he didn’t receive any answers. “I was driving at the allowed speed limit. The police patrol didn’t observe a safe distance, however, and it literally began clinging to me,” said Hrnko.
Also, the officers were allegedly disrespectful towards Hrnko as they were carrying out a breathalyser test on him. “They were yelling at me during the breathalyser test, so I protested, pointing out that I’m an MP and that I’d complain. The policeman reacted by yelling even more, claiming that he wasn’t interested in my job,” said Hrnko.
“Was it an impartial investigation of a misdemeanour – as they obviously wanted to seize my driving licence even before leaving the car? Wasn’t it perhaps bullying? They prohibited me from continuing to drive without any proper reason; they at least could have allowed me to drive home. Wasn’t it perhaps denigrating to call me drunk, as the breathalyser test was negative?” asked Hrnko.
