Former Mediservis co-owner admits bribing hospital management in Czechia

The Czech National Organized Crime Agency (NCOZ) has obtained new testimony in the corruption case involving hospitals in the Ústí nad Labem Region and Jihlava: Jan Mára, former co-owner of the medical supply firm Mediservis, has confessed to bribing the management of the Krajská zdravotní hospital holding and Tomáš Burian, the case's main defendant, according to sources familiar with the investigation.

Confessions before the case closes

According to the sources, Mára was questioned a few days ago in an interrogation that lasted almost the entire day. He not only admitted guilt but also asked prosecutors to strike a plea deal with him. Shortly before him, Pavel Voral, the holding's former deputy director for commerce, gave similar testimony — sources say he too confessed to corruption and wants to negotiate his sentence.

Neither Mára nor Voral would comment on reports of their confessions. "No, thank you, I don't want to talk," Voral said. Mára's lawyer, Lukáš Aichinger, also declined to comment.

Investigators are speaking about the case only in general terms. "I can only say that the case is still under investigation, supervised by the European Public Prosecutor's Office," said NCOZ spokesman Jaroslav Ibehej. The European Public Prosecutor's Office, which oversees the case, said there is no new information and the investigation continues.

Bribes for supplies and equipment

According to investigators, Jan Mára, as co-owner of Mediservis, handed the group more than 735,000 crowns. Police say the bribes amounted to between 2 and 15 percent of the total value of medical supplies the holding purchased from the firm. Besides scheme organizer Tomáš Burian and Pavel Voral, the money also went to Petr Malý, who headed Krajská zdravotní at the time — police say there is video footage of the men splitting the bribes in Burian's apartment in central Prague.

Investigators describe three major procurements in which, according to police, bribery took place. For a waste disposal contract worth a total of 197 million crowns excluding VAT, bribes were paid in installments totaling 13.8 million crowns. For the purchase of a Maquet Magnus operating table worth 6.6 million crowns excluding VAT, police documented a payment of 580,000 crowns, and for an order of operating theaters worth 20.5 million crowns excluding VAT, a further 216,000 crowns changed hands.

Parking lots and destroyed evidence

During questioning, Pavel Voral said the money was handed over, among other places, in the parking lot in front of the Galerie Butovice shopping center in Prague, and that the group also met at rest stops along the D1 highway. He also described how Burian covered his tracks: "Once an order was settled, he would tear up the paper and flush it down the toilet," Voral said.

Criminal proceedings in the case are currently underway against 12 people and 7 companies. They are charged with accepting and giving bribes, collusion for gain in public procurement, laundering proceeds of criminal activity, damage to the EU's financial interests, and subsidy fraud.

Around Prague, based on reporting by seznamzpravy.cz