Just under two years after launching a judicial investigation, the Specialised State Prosecutor’s Office dismissed charges against former Minister of the Economy, Zdravko Počivalšek, over a deal involving the purchase of ventilators during the Covid-19 epidemic. During the judicial investigation, prosecutors found that there was no evidence of a criminal offence, reported Television Slovenija, which was one of the main culprits for making the scandal bigger than it was.
Former Minister Zdravko Počivalšek expressed his satisfaction to the television station that the proceedings had been halted. He said that he had respected and trusted the rule of law throughout the proceedings, and that this decision further confirmed that he had not acted unlawfully in the search for and procurement of protective equipment and ventilators.
He also wrote on X: “The end of the ventilators saga! After five years of investigations, headlines and lynching, the story is over. The truth? The prosecution, which withdrew from the case, and the court, which terminated the investigation, found that we did not favour anyone and that we did not act outside the law. In a time of crisis, we worked 24/7 to ensure that Slovenia received the equipment and ventilators that saved lives. I wouldn’t wish it upon anyone to be in the shoes of those of us who bore the greatest responsibility at that time. The events seem distant, but they could easily happen again. I am grateful to all of you who believed in my, or rather our, work. All those who made up claims should be aware of the damage they cause with their own (un)censorship or incompetence. I understand that such claims can “send you” all the way to The Hague or that they can sometimes hit the mark, but it is clear that we will have to start building certain standards again. This chapter is now closed. We have new opportunities ahead of us to continue building Slovenia in the right direction for the benefit of all of us who live and work here.”
… je ugotovilo, da nismo nikogar preferirali in da nismo delali mimo zakonov. V kriznem času smo se trudili 24/7, da je Slovenija dobila opremo in ventilatorje, ki so reševali življenja. ✅ 2/6
— Zdravko Počivalšek (@PocivalsekZ) October 6, 2025
The state purchased the ventilators from the company Geneplanet in the spring of 2020. In May 2022, the National Bureau of Investigation (NPU) filed a criminal complaint against Počivalšek with the prosecutor’s office on suspicion of abuse of official position in connection with the ventilator case. His colleague Andreja Potočnik and Geneplanet Director Marko Bitenc were accused of aiding and abetting the abuse of official position. In April 2023, the Specialised State Prosecutor’s Office filed a request for a judicial investigation with the Ljubljana District Court.
On the 1st of September of this year, just under two years after the judicial investigation was launched, the prosecutor’s office withdrew the charges. As they explained, there is no evidence that the defendants committed a criminal offence. They did not provide any further details. On the 8th of September, the Ljubljana District Court issued a decision to terminate the investigation, and the decision became final on 24th of September, according to TV Slovenija.
Three years ago, the Commission for the Prevention of Corruption (KPK) found that Počivalšek had violated integrity in the business deal in question and that minimum public procurement standards had not been met in the procurement process, the television station recalled.
The former Prime Minister, Janez Janša, also commented on the epilogue of the affair, writing: “This is how the ‘tolerant, supportive, compassionate, inclusive, unifying, liberal…’ transitional left destroyed five years of a person’s life who saved people’s health and lives in a time of crisis. In return, he received media discrediting and an attempt at a judicial liquidation.”
C. Š.
