Croatian health minister out: Major anti-corruption sweep hits government official
Police raids hit Croatian health ministry in wide-ranging corruption probe. Eight people including top health officials face charges of bribery and money-laundering in Zagreb region
Croatian Prime-Minister Andrej Plenkovic fired Health Minister Vili Beros after law-enforcement stormed the ministers home early morning Nov 15th. Local media sources say Beros was taken into custody
The Office for Suppression of Corruption and Organised Crime launched a wide-ranging operation targeting several high-ranking officials (including a key govt representative) in Zagreb and the sea-side town of Skadar; investigators dont plan to announce next steps until after suspect questioning
The European Public Prosecutors Zagreb office opened a case against 8 persons - including the ex-Health Minister and two hospital chiefs - plus two companies. The probe focuses on multiple charges:
- accepting bribes
- giving bribes
- abuse of power
- money-laundering activities
The govt spokesperson announced an upcoming press-conference to address the situation‚ while the state attorneys office will join to provide more details about the on-going investigation - which spans multiple locations across the nations capital area
The anti-corruption sweep marks one of the biggest crackdowns in recent Croatian history‚ targeting top-level public health management
