Deputy Mayor of Náchod and architect accused in the case of the regional headquarters

Náchod/Hradec Králové - The police have charged Deputy Mayor of Náchod Tomáš Šubert (Patriots of Náchod) and Hradec Králové architect Pavel Tušl with the crime of fraud in a public competition. The police charged them in connection with the allegedly overpriced purchase of furniture for the new seat of the Královéhradecký region. Both defendants, who deny any wrongdoing, confirmed this to ČTK today. Šubert was a member of the Hradec Králové region council for ODS until 2008, and Tušl designed the building.
    "The defendants are suspected of committing the crime of fraud in a public competition and public auction. One of these defendants allegedly committed the act in conjunction with the crime of abuse of power by a public official," said state prosecutor Radim Vítek to ČTK and Czech Television today. If proven guilty, the crime of fraud in a public competition could lead to up to eight years in prison, while abuse of power by a public official could carry a sentence of up to ten years.
    "I disagree with the charges; I feel innocent in this whole matter," Šubert told ČTK today. He informed the representatives of the four-coalition in Náchod about his prosecution and offered to resign from the position of deputy mayor. The representatives of the four-coalition, which includes the winning ČSSD along with the Patriots of Náchod, TOP 09, and the SNK-ED and VV Association in the elections, rejected his proposal and expressed their trust in him. "This case is merely a personal matter of ing. Šubert; it arose in the past, it has no and never had any relation to the activities of the Náchod municipality," the representatives of the four-coalition stated in a press release. They added that they respect the presumption of innocence in this whole case.
    Architect Pavel Tušl, who designed the extensive reconstruction of the former brewery into the region's headquarters, told ČTK today that he disagrees with the charges. "I have handed it over to the lawyers, and we have filed a complaint against it," Tušl said.
    In the case of the furniture purchase for the Hradec Králové region, the police already prosecuted five former regional councilors and a former official of the Královéhradecký region earlier this year; one of those charged was former regional governor Pavel Bradík (ODS). The district prosecutor's office in Hradec Králové discontinued their prosecution in May. The police then stated that criminal proceedings in this matter would continue, and they would further investigate the case.
    The anti-corruption police suspected the six of the crime of breach of duty in the administration of another's property in the third paragraph, and if the accused were proven guilty, they faced two to eight years in prison. The charges were brought by the police in connection with the procurement of furniture for 36 million crowns for the newly built regional headquarters. Police claim that this is not atypical furniture and that the region allegedly suffered damages exceeding five million crowns.
    The Královéhradecký region will pay nearly 1.9 billion crowns for its headquarters in the former Hradec brewery complex over a twenty-year lease. The reconstruction lasted from April 2005 to October 2007. It is the largest investment project in the region and likely the most expensive headquarters for officials in the entire country.