By Veronika Gulyas
BUDAPEST--Hungarian oil and gas company MOL Nyrt (MOL.BU) on
Wednesday said it would defend itself against "outrageous actions"
against its chief executive, Zsolt Hernadi, after an arrest warrant
was issued for his arrest.
Croatia issued a warrant Friday after Mr. Hernadi failed to show
up for questioning in connection with the corruption conviction of
former Croatian Prime Minister Ivo Sanader. He was sentenced to 10
years in prison in November.
"MOL will defend itself by all legal means against the
outrageous actions that have been taken against Mr. Hernadi and the
company, which appear to be influenced by interests seeking to
intimidate both the company and its chairman," the statement
said.
Croatia's state attorney, the Zagreb country court and the
justice ministry didn't immediately respond to phone calls seeking
comment.
The charges against Mr. Sanader included allegedly taking bribes
from MOL for granting the company full management rights over
Croatian energy firm INA d.d. (INA.ZG) in 2008. Mr. Sanader, who
denied any wrongdoing during his trial, was in office between 2003
and 2009.
Hungarian authorities dismissed the allegations against MOL
after conducting its own investigation into the matter, MOL
said.
"The investigation has revealed no evidence of improper or
illegal business practices by MOL or any of its representatives,"
the statement said.
The Hungarian state holds a 24.6% stake in MOL, while MOL owns a
49.1% stake in INA and has management rights, while the Croatian
government owns 44.8% of INA.
Write to Veronika Gulyas at veronika.gulyas@dowjones.com