Sale of Alan Hotel – New Probe in Privatisation

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The Zagreb County Court ordered another probe into the Croatian Privatisation Fund for embezzlement in the sale of Alan Hotel.

The Zagreb County Court has ordered an investigation into a former deputy president of the Croatian privatisation Fund (HFP), Kresimir Starcevic, and another ten persons suspected of embezzlement and the signing of a harmful contract, the media reported. They are suspected of having enabled the purchase of shares of Hotel Alan d.d. Starigrad by Hypo Alpe Adria Bank for 8.8 million kuna, although the shares’ value was 27.4 million kuna.

Apart from Kresimir Starcevic, other suspects include Karl Heinz Truskaller, management board

Minister’s generous assistant

The culture minister’s assistant, Zoran Sikic, is suspected of, together with other members of the Hotel Alan’s Supervisory Board, allowing Kuzman Marasovic to lease and sell offices on the ground floor of the hotel at a price lower than the actual price. Marasovic leased out 117 square metres of offices to the Bamapharm pharmacy for ten years without lease payment.

chairman of Hypo Alpe Adria Bank and the bank’s trustees, Igor Kodzoman, Constantin Cesnovar and Gerhard Greimer. An investigation has also been launched into the Hotel Alan management board chairman and chairman of the supervisory board, Kuzman Marasovic, who is also the owner of the Alan Tours company.

Other suspects are Josko Milisa, former employee of the Croatian Privatisation Fund, Hrvoje Brajdic, Ivan Siric and Zoran Sikic former director of the Paklenica National Park and current culture minister’s assistant.

Motion for investigation from November 2006

The Zadar Municipal State Prosecution moved for a probe back in November of last year on the basis of a report by the Split tax administration and findings of the State Audit.

Starcevic is suspected of having signed a sales contract for 91,595 regular shares of Hotel Alan in 2002, despite opposing opinions of the Croatian Privatisation Fund’s Steering Committee and without the knowledge of the HFP’s president.

Hypo Alpe Adria Bank committed itself to invest the remainder of the money, 18.6 million kuna, into the adaptation and reconstruction of the hotel by June 30, 2005. The bank not only did not meet its obligations, but also issued investment loans to the hotel via the Alan Tours company based in Zadar, indebting it.

Only several months after the cheap purchase of a valuable facility, the new owner sold 87,667 shares to Alan Tours, which they covered up with fabricated business dealings. Alan Tours’s director was also head of the Hotel Alan’s Supervisory Board.