Horror: a couple was shot in the head and dismembered in Budapest
Norbert K., a Slovakian national, and his Hungarian partner Zsolt H. are accused of shooting dead a Slovakian man and his girlfriend in a Budapest apartment six and a half years ago, then dismembering and burying the bodies. Now, their trial has started.
The beginning of the trial
On Wednesday, the trial of the two men started with a preparatory session at the Metropolitan Court. According to information from the Metropolitan Court, neither the two man, nor their female co-accused admitted their guilt during their hearing. The two men are accused of premeditated murder, aggravated assault and attempted criminal damage to property. The woman is accused of money-laundering, 24.hu reports.
The sentences
The prosecutor’s office has asked for life sentences for the two men, but has also made a moderate proposal for the Slovakian in case he pleads guilty to all charges and waives his right to trial at yesterday’s preparatory session. In this case, the man could have been released on parole after 35 years, but he did not wish to take up this option.
In the case of the Hungarian man, Zsolt H., the prosecution did not make a moderate motion because he was already sentenced to life imprisonment in Pécs last year in another case. There, he was charged for armed robbery and other crimes. This means that he cannot even be released on parole under the law if proven guilty. Zsolt H.’s girlfriend, who is accused of money laundering, was sentenced to three years in prison and banned from public office for three years.
Background
The victim, a Slovak national, was sentenced to prison in Slovakia in autumn 2014. The Slovakian man escaped from prison to Hungary and in January 2015 rented an apartment in District XIII in January 2015, using another name and personal details. He intended to cover the costs of his hiding in Hungary with large sums of cash and investment gold. To this end, he instructed his 43-year-old Slovak acquaintance, K. Norbert, as his confidant, to open a bank account in his name and rent him a safe deposit box.
According to the prosecution, the confidant then decided to take advantage of the victim’s situation and kill him in order to obtain his property. He asked his accomplice, the 42-year-old Hungarian man, Zsolt H., to assist in the killing, who agreed to cooperate in the killing in exchange for a financial share.
The murder
After the preparations, the suspects appeared at the Budapest apartment on 11 February 2016 in the morning, where they shot the 43-year-old Slovak man and his 29-year-old girlfriend several times in the head at close range.
The Hungarian man then dismembered the bodies in the bathroom of the apartment, packed the body parts and the torsos in sports bags. Then, he drove them to Pilisszentiván in the victim’s car, where he put them in the previously dug pit, poured lime and water over them and finally buried the pit. At the same time, the Slovak accused emptied the safe, which had been rented on behalf of the victim, and took the valuables from it. The next day, the two accused went back to the apartment and cleaned it.
The continuation
At yesterday’s preparatory meeting, Norbert K.’s defence counsel requested that the case be transferred for lack of jurisdiction. However, the court rejected this request, arguing that the accused’s partner is a Hungarian citizen and that the Slovak authorities had transferred the case to the Hungarian investigating authority during the investigation. The next hearing will take place on 25 October.
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Source: 24.hu, police.hu