Possible Broader Plot Behind Slovak Premier’s Shooting

Indications emerge that gunman was part of a group.

As I noted in my post last week about the man who shot Slovak Prime Minister Robert Fico, Who Is Juraj Cintula?

It seems to me that no apparent political group affiliation does not necessarily mean that Cintula was not influenced or directed by someone else. Cintula’s online political rants in which he expressed strong emotions and shifting opinions could have flagged him as man who could be approached and influenced by an agent serving powerful interests. In this hypothetical scenario, Cintula may have fallen under the influence of an agent who presented himself under false pretenses.

This morning I noticed a Bloomberg report published on Sunday stating the following:

The Slovak police said they’re investigating the possible involvement of more people than just a “lone-wolf” shooter in the assassination attempt on Prime Minister Robert Fico.

Government officials initially said that a single perpetrator with a political motive was responsible for the May 15 attack. On Sunday, authorities said that cooperation with domestic and foreign intelligence services had led to a broadening of the probe, to include a version in which a group - which wasn’t identified - may have been linked to the crime. …

A potential broader assassination plot is supported by the fact that the assailant’s social media communications were erased by another person about two hours after the shooting, Interior Minister Matus Sutaj-Estok told reporters on Sunday.

Based on that development, “we added a version that it wasn’t only a lone-wolf attacker, but that the crime may have been conducted by a certain group of people,” he said, declining to give more details due to the sensitive nature of the case.

This seems to be consistent with my hunch that Cintula’s social media activities could provide a valuable lead to co-conspirators, who probably approached him after reading his social media posts.