PM and interior minister refute president’s claim of two lines of investigation in Vrbětice blasts

There is only one line of investigation in the Vrbětice depot blasts and it is directly connected to the movements of Russian intelligence agents on Czech soil, Interior Minister Jan Hamáček said on Monday in response to President Zeman’s claim that investigators were still working with two versions, one of which was an accident caused by unprofessional handling of explosives. Mr. Hamáček said the original version based on negligence had been abandoned years ago and since 2018 investigators had been following a single line of investigation –that involving the Russian intelligence service.

Mr. Hamáček’s words were confirmed by Prime Minister Andrej Babiš on Monday evening. Following a meeting with the head of state, Mr. Babiš, said he had no idea why the president had felt the need to refer to the first line of investigation which was no longer relevant.

Meanwhile, Senate Speaker Miloš Vystrčil said the upper chamber would consider the possibility of filing a constitutional complaint against the president for treason. Senator Vystrčil said it was increasingly obvious that the president was not acting in the interests of the Czech Republic.