Kostak Affair: Buried Waste, €8.7 Million in Damage and Intercepted Conversations
Criminal investigators suspect that five accused individuals brought €8.7 million in unlawful property gains to Krško municipal waste company Kostak. 24ur reveals intercepted conversations from a court order.
Wiretaps, Buried Waste and Million-Euro Hole in Krško Municipal Waste Company
Criminal investigators suspect that five accused individuals – four employees of Krško municipal waste company Kostak and a former environmental inspector – brought €8.7 million in unlawful property gains to the company. The story of allegedly illegally buried waste at the Waste Management Centre Spodnji Stari Grad has been unfolding since 2022, when the first anonymous reports were received by police and the prosecution. 24ur now reveals the background of the affair.
"There Will Be Action on Wednesday" – Intercepted Conversations from Court Order
24UR's Dejstva rubric obtained an unofficial court order in which criminal investigators documented intercepted telephone conversations between former Kostak managers. One of the fragments cited by police reads: "If I give those pictures, then we're screwed, aren't we." In the document, police suggest that employees knew where the waste was buried and attempted to conceal it.
In October last year, criminal investigators conducted 13 house searches on suspicion of environmental pollution or destruction and suspicion of aiding such acts. The basis for suspicion stems from a waste management report which allegedly did not show where approximately 58,000 tonnes of waste ended up in a single year.
Alleged Criminal Association and Individual Roles
Criminal investigators suspect that Miljenko Muha, as head of the alleged criminal association – as it is named in the court order – gave instructions to board member Jožeto Leskovarju and director of the raw materials management sector Jožica Stegne. Police suspect that they then organised the falsification of documentation to fraudulently show waste processing.
The workers who allegedly physically buried the waste were led at the site under the direction of superiors by Martin Baznik, head of the waste management centre, who also paid their wages. Criminal investigators accuse former environmental inspector Mojca Križe of aiding a criminal act.
Defence of Accused: "Allegations are Taken Out of Context"
The accused from Kostak do not comment on the alleged irregularities during the criminal investigation. Mojca Križe, through her lawyer Maja Bahor from the Bahor Škerlj law firm, denies any responsibility. The lawyer stated: "All allegations against our client are false or presented out of context, from which their content also shows a clear misunderstanding of how an inspector operates and of the inspection procedure itself."
The lawyer added that an inspector in such procedures always informs the contracted party of the day and time of the visit and explains the procedure to them. Internal supervision and an extraordinary audit, which according to her were fully carried out, did not find any irregularities in Križe's work. "Our client therefore believes that she was placed in the position of a person who should take responsibility for irregularities that she did not cause."
Muha defended himself in December 2024, then still as board president, with the words: "All our internal procedures, checking these records and everything else have shown that there was no burying of waste."
Inspection Procedures and Fines Already Imposed
The Environmental Inspectorate conducted several inspection procedures against Kostak in past years. Most have been concluded, including procedures concerning a fire, uncollected packaging and photovoltaics. Also concluded is the procedure in which inspectors discovered 2,900 cubic metres of buried municipal waste underground – Kostak removed and processed it.
The procedure concerning waste management in the CRO Spodnji Stari Grad area is still ongoing. Because Kostak does not store waste adequately under roof in closed facilities, as required by permit, two monetary fines have been imposed – in the amounts of €10,000 and €50,000. Both have already been paid.
New Management: Waste Reduced by a Quarter, Loss Exceeds Three Million
The previous management left behind a loss of more than three million euros. The new management, headed by Sergej Murgelj, immediately began remedying operations, emphasises board member Aleksander Svetelšek.
Svetelšek explained to 24ur that they began reducing the quantity of accumulated waste in the first half of the year: "We reduced this pile of waste in that half-year from 57,000 tonnes to 43,000 tonnes, which represents 25 per cent. We are solving this problem. But it is a major technical challenge because the quantity is large."
The complete set of intercepted conversations obtained by 24ur will be published in the 24UR Dejstva rubric.
Source: 24ur