The Panel of the County Court in Zagreb has confirmed the indictment against former Agrokor owner Ivica Todorić and the auditor of Olivija Discordia, the Novi list reports. The prosecution accuses them of malpractices that caused the conglomerate losses of nearly €180 million.
No special appeal is permitted against the Panel’s decision, so the next step is the appointment of the judge who will preside over the main hearing and the scheduling of its start. Court sources indicate that proceedings against Discordia could be severed and temporarily suspended due to his poor health. In that case, only Todorić would remain on the defendant’s bench.
The decision came after former Agrokor auditor Sanja Hrstić pleaded guilty on Thursday. She was given a suspended nine-month prison sentence, with a four-year probation period and €10,000 in court costs. The verdict for aiding in the abuse of trust in business operations and forgery of documents became final immediately.
This is the third version of the indictment in the Agrokor case. The Zagreb County State Attorney’s Office filed it in July last year against six defendants, after key financial expert testimony was previously declared unlawful and a new one was prepared. Originally, 15 people were indicted, and the damage in the previous indictment amounted to more than HRK 1.2 billion. The prosecution dropped charges against nine previously indicted individuals due to lack of evidence.
According to the indictment, Todorić and former board member Tomislav Lučić colluded between 2006 and mid-2016 to falsely present Agrokor’s financial status. The prosecution claims they thereby paid themselves and affiliated companies unjustified dividends. Todorić was paid more than €100 million from Agrokor’s accounts between 2013 and 2017 for the buyback of shares from the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development. All of this, according to the indictment, was carried out without decisions from supervisory bodies and without any real intention of repaying the money.
Lučić, former directors Alojzije Pandžić and Marijan Alagušić pleaded guilty as early as October. Lučić was given a suspended 11-month prison sentence and a €50,000 fine, while Pandžić and Alagušić received suspended nine-month sentences each.
