A Prague court has sentenced a 27-year-old Colombian man to eight years in prison after he admitted to committing a terrorist attack involving arson at a city bus depot.
The man, Andres Alfonso De La Hoz De La Cruz, reached a plea agreement with the state prosecutor and accepted both the prison term. The 8-year prison sentence is to be followed by a deportation and indefinite re-entry ban from the Czech Republic.
The defendant apologized in court and expressed a wish to serve his sentence in Colombia. He also agreed to pay restitution for the damage caused.
The attack took place a year ago during the night of June 5th, 2024. The man poured petrol over several buses at the Klíčov depot and set them alight.
Workers from the Prague Public Transit Company managed to put out the fire. The initial damage was estimated at CZK 200,000, though court documents now cite a figure of around CZK 115,000.
According to the Czech Radio, the Colombian ambassador was present at the hearing. The court proceeding was conducted through the Spanish interpreter.
Before the attack, De La Hoz De La Cruz had been in the country for only five days. According to earlier reporting by Seznam Zprávy, he told police he had been paid to carry out the act.
He was also planning one more attack, possibly at a movie theater.
Czech Prime Minister Petr Fiala previously expressed suspicion that the Russian intelligence services may have been involved in the case.
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