Trial of attacker from gymnasium in Spišská Stará Ves: classmates testified about his behaviour
The trial continued at the Specialised Criminal Court in Pezinok of 19-year-old Samuel, who faces life imprisonment for a murder at the gymnasium.
Court heard fellow students of attacker from Lučenec
The trial of the attacker from the gymnasium in Spišská Stará Ves continued on Friday, 29 May at the Specialised Criminal Court in Pezinok. According to ta3.com, 19-year-old Samuel, who stabbed to death the deputy headmistress and his fellow student on 16 January 2025, faces a life sentence.
The hearing continued with testimonies from witnesses — former classmates of the defendant from his previous school in Lučenec. The judge questioned them about Samuel's behaviour at school and whether he had indicated to them on the internet that he was planning to commit murder. The chairman of the senate simultaneously prohibited public disclosure of the content of the testimonies in order not to influence other summoned witnesses.
Defence counsel Ľuboš Dobrovič refused to comment on the content of the testimonies. "I cannot comment on the content of witness testimonies, both with regard to procedural tactics and with regard to the measure of the senate chairman. I will assess these facts in my final speech," he said. According to him, no request to hear the defendant's parents had been submitted. "From my perspective, the defendant's parents cannot testify to anything relating to the actual act," he added, noting that the parents had already been heard during the preparatory proceedings and their testimony would be read at the hearing if necessary.
Prosecutor Michal Šoltýs of the Regional Prosecutor's Office in Prešov submitted new evidence to the court — further communication between the defendant and his classmates. The defence objected to the lack of time to analyse them. Šoltýs explained that he had submitted the evidence immediately after receiving it: "These were pieces of evidence that were secured through legal assistance from the United States of America."
The court scheduled the reading of transcripts from witness testimonies of other persons for Friday afternoon. The prosecutor also explained why the procedural parties ultimately did not agree on personal re-examination of particularly vulnerable victims. "Recalling and testifying about facts they experienced could cause them trauma," said Šoltýs.
In the attack of 16 January 2025, the deputy headmistress and one student were killed, and another female student was injured. Police charged the then 18-year-old Samuel with premeditated murder, and the court decided on his detention, in which he remains to this day. The prosecutor of the Regional Prosecutor's Office in Prešov filed an indictment for the particularly serious crime of premeditated murder at the end of January 2026. The defendant does not deny committing the act but disagrees with its legal classification.
Source: Google News SK — Crime (sk)