The human rights ombudsman has alerted to a suspected case of police brutality which was set to go uninvestigated had it not been brought to his attention. Speaking to the press on Wednesday, Hanzek said the case involved unwarranted use of force during a crowd control operation at a sporting fixture.
Hanzek said the alleged victim had filed a complaint against the police officer involved, but his complaint was later thrown out by the prosecutor's office "on nothing more than the police documents."
Hanzek said he was concerned by the fact the prosecutor involved had not collected independent information about the case or at least interviewed the alleged victim.

The alleged victim, said Hanzek, claims he was hit in the face by the police officer after he had been handcuffed.

Responding to an initial complaint, an internal police review found the allegations to be unsubstantiated and sent a recommendation to the Trbovlje prosecutor's office that it find there was no grounds for a case against the police officer.

The prosecutor in the central Slovenian city asked that the police report be supplemented with an opinion on the justification for the use of force. Having been provided with a response from police, she threw out the complaint.

We wanted to make this case an example of the fact that the police and prosecution can do a better job in getting to the bottom of such cases, Hanzek said.

Persons who claim they are the victims of police brutality have the right to a fair treatment of their complaints, so that a conclusive decision can be made based on facts, Hanzek said.

Hanzek believes the prosecution should in this case have asked for an expert opinion on the extent of the injuries sustained by the alleged victim to determine whether there was unwarranted use of force.

The ombudsman also highlighted that, in spite of his injury, the alleged victim was held for 12 hours before being granted access to medical attention.

Personnel at the Trbovlje Hospital established that the bruise under his left eye was consistent with injuries sustained from a punch, Hanzek said.