The trial of former Sibenik judge Maja Supe, businessman Blaz Petrovic and Sibenik lawyer Branimir Zmijanovic continues at the County Court in Split.

On Thursday, 65-year-old Tomas Rajner, a former close associate of Petrovic and now an important witness for the Office for Combating Corruption and Organised Crime (USKOK), was to be heard. However, he did not appear in court, reports the daily newspaper Slobodna Dalmacija.

Judge Dinko Mesin informed the court that Rajner’s son had contacted the court in Split by telephone to report that his father had been brutally attacked by two unknown persons two days before his scheduled court appearance. The incident took place on 13 November, around 6:40 a.m., in front of a shop in the Dubrava district of Zagreb.

Serious injuries

The extent of Rajner’s injuries is not yet known, but it has been confirmed that they are serious and that he is currently being treated at KB Dubrava hospital. The hearing has been postponed until early next year.

The police have also issued a statement on the attack, without naming names.

“On 12 November, at around 6:40 am, two perpetrators physically attacked a 65-year-old man in Dubrava, on Vile Velebita Street, and then fled. The 65-year-old man received medical treatment at Dubrava Clinical Hospital, where he was found to have suffered serious injuries. The criminal investigation is ongoing,” reports the police.

In March 2023, the Anti-Corruption Bureau USKOK brought charges against the former judge, Maja Supe, for accepting a bribe of €15,000 to acquit businessman Blaz Petrovic, with lawyer Branimir Zmijanovic acting as an intermediary.

Why was Supe charged?

At the time, Supe was a judge at the Sibenik Municipal Court, presiding over a case in which Petrovic was charged and represented by lawyer Branimir Zmijanovic.

According to the indictment, Petrovic, through Zmijanovic, agreed to pay Supe €15,000 for an acquittal, regardless of the outcome of the trial. The plan was to pay €6,000 before the verdict and €9,000 after the judgement became final.

Zmijanovic drafted a contract for the sale of a property in Sibenik that belonged to Supe’s mother. The contract stipulated that the buyer would deposit €6,000 as an advance, which the seller would keep if the buyer cancelled the purchase. Supe’s mother signed the contract at her daughter’s request, while the buyer did so at Petrovic’s request.

Petrovic transferred €6,000 to Supe’s mother’s account, which he claimed was an advance payment under the contract, when in fact it was a bribe. In November 2013, Supe acquitted Petrovic and his co-defendant. After the judgement became final in September 2014, Petrovic paid Supe the remaining €9,000.

Supe was deputy head of the Sibenik Municipal Court and is also known for acquitting businessman Tomislav Horvatincic, who caused a boat accident in which an Italian couple died.