Analysis

Former Slovak soldier confesses to Ján Kuciak murder

Miroslav Marček, a former soldier, has reportedly confessed the murder of Slovak investigative journalist Ján Kuciak and his fiancée Martina Kušnírová. The couple were shot in February 2018 at their home in the town of Vel’ka Mača.

Mr Marček is already in police custody, having been arrested with other three people in October 2018. Businessman Marian Kočner has been charged with ordering the murder.

The police had originally suspected that Mr Marček was the driver who drove hit man Tomáš Szabó, another of those under arrest, to the crime scene. A number of Slovak media sources have repoted however that after a six-hours interrogation, Mr Marček confessed to the shooting. His lawyer, however, continues to insist that his client is innocent.

The double murder led to mass protests that forced then prime minister Robert Fico to resign in March 2018.

Sustained public outrage over the crime then helped propel Zuzana Čaputová, an anti-corruption activist and environmental lawyer, to the presidency in March elections.