The Office of the President of the Republic of Croatia is facing criticism after one of its employees was found guilty of driving under the influence and hiding a traffic accident. According to reports by Danica.hr, the incident occurred in October around 2:30 am in Zagreb on Ulica kneza Branimira. The employee, a 26-year-old man, was driving with a blood alcohol concentration above the legal limit and lost control of his car, running into a curb stone and landing on the soft ground before drifting and rotating into a tree.

The judge in the case stated that the man had consumed alcohol at a cafe on Kvatrić before heading home. He claimed to have been driving less than 60 kilometers per hour but lost control of his vehicle due to foggy conditions and slippery roads. He suffered physical injuries as a result of the accident but regained consciousness afterwards and called for help.

In court, the defendant argued that he did not have access to transportation and worked long hours, which made it difficult for him to get around without driving. However, he was ultimately found guilty of driving under the influence and hiding an accident. The judge fined him 730 euros and imposed a one-month ban on driving motor vehicles. He was also supposed to pay 150 euros for procedure costs but was released from this obligation because he works at the Office of the President of Croatia.

The incident has sparked calls for increased scrutiny of government officials’ behavior while they are on duty, particularly when it comes to their personal choices such as consuming alcohol before driving or hiding accidents from authorities. It remains to be seen what consequences this will have for the employee or his workplace in terms of accountability or potential disciplinary action.