STA, 4 April 2018 - House searches were conducted in Maribor today and two persons were detained as part of an investigation into suspected trafficking in illegal stimulants. According to the newspaper Večer, an employee of the UKC Maribor hospital and a track-and-field coach are among the suspects.
Večer reports on its webpage that today's operation follows a months-long investigation that included covert methods. Police were reportedly targeting a Maribor hospital employee suspected of stealing drugs and selling them as doping on the black market.
Unofficially, his top client was Igor Šalamun, a member of the Maribor track-and-field club AD Štajerska Maribor who coaches professional as well as recreational long-distance runners.
The club distanced itself from the coach suspected of doping involvement, underlining that the man coordinated only one group in the club.
This was a group of about 30 recreational athletes, one of whom was also the suspected UKC Maribor employee, Boris Špes, according to Maja Bezjak, a coach at AD Štajerska.
She said that the coaches working with children and youths were in shock. "Our club, our management board distance themselves from these actions and have a zero doping tolerance policy."
According to Večer, which alleges the case involved blood doping, searches were conducted at three locations today, including at the homes of Šalamun and the employee of UKC's pulmonary medicine department.
