Brno court jails local politicians on corruption charges

A court in Brno put two local politicians in jail on Saturday on corruption charges. Although no specific names were released, the prosecutors had confirmed that the mayor of the Brno’s Žabovřesky municipality, Civic Democrat Aleš Kvapil, as well as Roman Novotný, also a member of the Civic Democrats, were arrested on Thursday for alleged corruption. The men face charges for demanding a bribe from a construction firm which was planning to build a hotel in the neighbourhood. The mayor reportedly asked for a bribe of four million crowns, or more than 200,000 US dollars, to issue the necessary permits. The firm then reported the incident to the police. If convicted, the men are facing up to 12 years in prison.