Milko Novič, who was found guilty of murdering the former director of the National Chemistry Institute, Janko Jamnik, has been released from prison. The Supreme Court suspended his prison sentence due to violations of his right to defence, after a petition for the protection of legality.

Milko Novič became the main suspect in the murder of Janko Jamnik just a day after the shooting at a restaurant parking in Ljubljana in December 2014. Traces of gunpowder, matching the cartridge from the crime scene, were found on his body. But the weapon was never found.

Almost three years after the murder, Novič was convicted for murdering Janko Jamnik. He was given a 25-year prison sentence. The argument of Novič’s defence, that the traces of gunpowder were from his jacket that he wore at a shooting range the previous year, were not upheld. Evidence pointing to his guilt, according to the court, were also his online inquiries about weapons.

Novič was in prison since 2014. He officially started serving his prison sentence in Dob at the start of this year, immediately after the final judgement. His defence filed an appeal at the Constitutional Court, which told them that they had not yet exhausted all the legal remedies. Novič’s defence then successfully petitioned for the protection of legality at the Supreme Court. The judges acknowledged that Novič’s right to defence was violated.