Justice minister intervenes in case of homeless man who stole five bread rolls

Justice Minister Marie Benešová has turned to the Supreme Court with a complaint regarding the severity of a verdict for a petty theft.

The complaint refers to the case of a homeless man who was sentenced to two years in prison for the theft of five bread rolls.

The man appealed and his sentence was lowered to 1.5 years in jail. The exceptional punishment was due to the state of emergency in place at the time of the theft.

The defence argued that the homeless man had been driven by hunger and had not been looting, but the argument was not taken into consideration.