Criminals in Croatia will no longer leave prison wealthier than when they entered, following the establishment of special departments within the State Attorney’s Office aimed at uncovering their illegally acquired and hidden assets.
This is one of the new proposals included in the amendments to the Criminal Procedure Act (ZKP) that the Ministry of Justice put out for public discussion on Friday and sent to all state attorney’s offices, municipal and county courts, departments of criminal law, and other interested parties.
The fifth amendments to the ZKP, which was enacted in 2008, would introduce special departments within the State Attorney’s Office for conducting asset investigations, and police and financial officers would uncover money, real estate, and other assets that criminals have acquired through criminal activities even before criminal proceedings are initiated.
The ministry emphasizes that there has not been an effective mechanism for detecting and confiscating illegal property benefits, especially those that criminals have hidden and converted into real estate or ownership shares under someone else’s name.
“The worst thing that has happened is that someone leaves prison in a better car than the one they entered with, registers at the employment office, while possessing immense wealth,” said a source familiar with the drafting of the law amendments.
Regarding investigations, they will remain under the jurisdiction of the State Attorney’s Office, but precise deadlines for action are being introduced. Thus, a criminal complaint must be resolved within six months of submission, and the complainant, victim, or injured party has the right to receive information from the state attorney about the actions taken within two months of its submission.
If the complaint is not resolved within six months, it is possible to appeal to a higher state attorney, and if legal deadlines continue to be violated, a complaint can be filed with the president of the court.
The suspect will be informed of the initiation of the investigation by delivering a decision on the conduct of the investigation (for acts under investigation) and within three days of the first evidentiary action (for acts not under investigation), and from that moment, they acquire the right to access the case file and the right to judicial protection if they believe their rights have been violated at any stage of the proceedings.
The investigation before the official initiation of proceedings is secret, and once it officially begins, the investigation is generally not public. This means that the immediate participants in the proceedings are obliged to keep the secret, but not other interested parties, such as the media, the ministry explains, adding that this actually legalizes the practice where the media reported on investigations of publicly exposed cases, such as corruption scandals.
If the amendments are accepted, a defendant who has been assigned a defense attorney at the expense of the state budget, and whose financial situation improves within ten years of the decision becoming final, will have to fully or partially pay the costs of defense ex officio.
Another novelty is that a privileged witness, a person who testifies against a family member, will not be able to withdraw their previously given testimony, which has happened in the past. The ministry believes that it should no longer happen that a privileged witness gives testimony, that proceedings are initiated, and then says they no longer wish to testify.
The amendments also abolish cross-examination, which, according to experts in the ministry, only prolongs the proceedings, so, as before the introduction of this procedural institute, the examination will be conducted by a judge who becomes the “master in the courtroom.”
Regarding settlements, the state attorney’s office and the defendant will not be able to reach an agreement without the victim’s consent in cases such as rape, and the victim has the right to a trusted person during questioning, while a child has the right to the presence of a legal guardian, as proposed in the amendments to the ZKP.
The proposed amendments, the ministry assesses, prevent delays in proceedings and irregularities in the work of state attorneys and courts, strengthen protection against arbitrary prosecution and investigation, expedite the process, and make it more efficient, with an enhanced role for the judge in controlling all phases of the proceedings.
The amendments to the ZKP are being made to implement the decision of the Constitutional Court from July 2012, which, due to non-compliance with the Constitution, annulled 48 articles of the law, but the amendments will not apply to proceedings currently conducted under the existing law, even though some of its provisions are unconstitutional, the ministry emphasizes.
