Prague - The name of Stanislav Gross was once grabbing frontpage headlines in the Czech (and when the going got really tough also foreign) press.
In 2004 he became the youngest Prime Minister this country has ever had. Soon after, the former engine driver trainee was forced to step down following a corruption scandal, in which he could not explain the dubious source of money for which he bought a luxurious apartment in Prague 4.
In 2007 the one-time Social Democratic leader became a minority shareholder of Moravia Energo, run by the steelmaking tycoon Tomáš Chrenek, in a share transaction that left plenty of room for questions.
Gross bought the shares from his friend and former Trade and Industry Deputy Minister Robert Sýkora for a price which remains somewhat questionable.
The estimated price for the 31 per cent share in Moravia Energo was a number of times higher than Gross had allegedly paid.
Read more: Train driver-cum-PM under suspicion of fraud. Again
Don´t worry, be happy
Now the former prime minister Stanislav Gross doesn't have to worry about the source of his wealth anymore. His tens of million of CZK have been won legally, as far as the authorities are concerned.
Czech police looked into Mr Gross's last year's Moravia Energo shares transaction that, according to Aktuálně.cz sources, earned the ex-PM about 80 million CZK.
According to paperwork shown to the police, he borrowed the 13 million CZK (plus interest of four million) from the Slovak company Key Investment.
A couple of months later, Mr Gross sold the shares to a company owned by the Slovak billionaire Pavol Krúpa with multi-million profit.
No proof
Nevertheless, police investigation found nothing to indict Mr Gross, and will be shelving the case shortly.
"Everything works out on the paper, everything is documented. There are no gaps in the case, there will be no charge," a police source close to the investigation said.
Among other things, Czech police were checking Gross's involvement in a shares operation to find out whether or not it was faked in order to allow money laundering by the ex-politician's business associates.
Anti-corruption service spokesman Roman Skřepek confirmed that so far there was nothing to prove Mr Gross was guilty.
"No checks so far had proved such an involvement. But the investigation is not finished, yet," Mr Skřepek added.
All in all, the shares story tells two tales about the ex Prime Minister: one, the transaction was thought through well and in detail (or he just might have had a good advisor); two, he hasn't lost much of his former influence.
