• Police officer charged with abuse of office for taking photo of dead composer
    02/05/2007

    The police officer who confessed last week to selling a photograph of the dead body of composer Karel Svoboda to a tabloid newspaper has been charged with abuse of office. After Mr Svoboda committed suicide last Sunday a photo appeared in the tabloid Blesk showing the dead man's hand and a pistol. The officer, who is 22 and has been in the police for two years, was a member of the first team to arrive on the scene. If convicted he faces up to 3 years in prison.
    Author: Pavla Horáková

  • Hyundai boss prison sentence not to affect works on Czech plant
    02/05/2007

    The Czech branch of the South Korean car-maker Hyundai Motors says the fact that company head Chung Mong-Koo faces a three-year prison sentence for misusing company money will not affect the building of a car plant in Nosovice in the northeast of the country. The plant should be launched this spring and is expected to turn out up to 300,000 cars a year and employ 3,500 people.
    Author: Pavla Horáková

  • Czech Republic sees record trade surplus in 2006
    02/05/2007

    Data released by the Czech Statistical Office on Monday show the Czech Republic posted a record trade surplus of 47.3 billion crowns (2.19 billion US dollars) in 2006. Strong sales of cars and other transport equipment and machinery, where the trade surplus widened to 64.6 billion crowns, helped the country beat 2005's record surplus by 8.7 billion crowns.
    Author: Pavla Horáková

  • Privatisation of Prague Airport could fetch 3 billion USD, says weekly
    02/05/2007

    The state company which administers Prague's Ruzyne airport could fetch up to 65 billion CZK (around 3 billion USD) when it is sold off within the next couple of years, Tyden reported. The weekly said a number of large foreign investors were interested in acquiring Letiste Praha (Prague Airport). It is one of the last major privatisations expected in the Czech Republic. Ruzyne handled a record 11.5 million passengers last year.
    Author: Pavla Horáková

  • Russia asks for extradition of man who threatened to blow up plane
    02/05/2007

    Russia has asked the Czech Republic to extradite a Russian citizen who threatened to detonate a bomb onboard a Russian plane last December. The aircraft flying from Moscow to Geneva was forced to make an emergency landing in Prague where the 32-year-old man was arrested. No explosive device was found. Under Russian law he could be sentenced to up to three years in prison. If tried by Czech courts he faces between three and fifteen years in jail.
    Author: Pavla Horáková

  • Tender declared for renovation of Vitkov hill national memorial
    02/05/2007

    The National Museum has declared a tender to renovate the national memorial on Prague's Vitkov hill, the weekly Euro reported. Work should begin on the monument this spring and last about two years. When completed the memorial will house an exhibition entitled Crossroads of Czech Statehood. There are also plans to open a terrace café with a view of the capital.
    Author: Pavla Horáková

  • Man dies after jumping out police station window
    02/05/2007

    A man who jumped out of a first-floor window while trying to escape from police custody has died. The 32-year-old suffered serious head injuries after jumping from the window of a police station in Kladno, central Bohemia on Saturday evening. An investigation has been launched into the incident.
    Author: Pavla Horáková

  • Paroubek set for shoe-in at party conference
    02/04/2007

    The chairman of the opposition Social Democrats, Jiri Paroubek, will most likely be unchallenged for the party's top job at a conference next month. Mr Paroubek received the backing of regional branches in Olomouc and central Bohemia on Saturday, meaning he now has support from all regions of the country. The Social Democrats finished second in elections last June with 32.3 percent of the vote.
    Author: Ian Willoughby

  • Man seriously injured after fall from police station window
    02/04/2007

    A man is in hospital with serious injuries after attempting to escape from a police station in Kladno, central Bohemia, police said. Shortly after being arrested for robbery the man tried to escape by jumping out of a window at the station. He was knocked unconscious and suffered a number of injuries when he hit the ground. An investigation has been launched into the incident. In 2002 a man died after trying to escape via a police station window in Brno.
    Author: Ian Willoughby

  • "Green" electricity consumption set to rise significantly in capital this year
    02/04/2007

    The consumption of electricity produced using renewable resources could increase in Prague by over 400 percent this year, said a spokesperson for supplier Prague Energy. New large consumers have been signing up for the "green" electricity, which is slightly more expensive than regular power. Over 500 Prague households began using the service last year.
    Author: Ian Willoughby

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