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Serbian drug scandal exposes deep-seated ties between crime and security services

The biggest drug case in Serbian contemporary history reveals a tangled web between the criminal narcotics industry and security services in the country. The case has truly become a representation of one corrupt regime divided into many centres of power, all fighting for their own interests.

On November 13th 2019, the head of the department for narcotics of the Belgrade police, Slobodan Milenković, and the chief of operations of the same unit, Dušan Mitič, were driving on the highway, when a black Audi with the cross markings of a Serbian Orthodox church, equipped with police lights, cut off their path. They decided to stop him, without knowing that this would be the beginning of their worst nightmare.

February 7, 2024 - Filip Mirilović - Hot TopicsIssue 1-2 2024Magazine

Photo: BalkansCat / Shutterstock

There were two people sitting in the car – the driver and a passenger, who immediately stepped out of the vehicle and greeted the two inspectors. The man informed the inspectors that he is also working with the interior ministry. His badge looked authentic. However, he had a beard, which is unusual for people working in this ministry – actually among the thousands of employees, only a few are exempted and have a right to have it.  The beard and the combination of both police lights and church markings on the car caught the inspectors’ eyes and raised their suspicions. The alleged colleague from the interior ministry was businessman Predrag Koluvija, already known to the police, but from the other side of the law. After notifying their superiors, the inspectors made a decision to arrest him and search his property.

Organic food, politicians and drugs

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