Members of the Serbian Ministry of Internal Affairs, acting on the orders of the Prosecutor’s Office for Organized Crime, have arrested eight people on suspicion that they, as members of the organized crime group “Balkan Cartel”, are behind shipments of more than a ton of cocaine from South America to Europe.
In coordination with Europol and after a months-long joint investigation with the police of Croatia and Bosnia and Herzegovina, D.M, B.P, M.P, B.V, N.B, D.N, I.C. and D.Đ were arrested in the areas of Belgrade, Niš, Novi Sad and Sremska Mitrovica, the Prosecutor’s Office for Organized Crime announced.
They are suspected of having committed the criminal offenses of unauthorized production and distribution of drugs and association for the purpose of committing criminal offenses from October 2019 to March 2021.
In the operation, a Serbian citizen S.J. was arrested in the territory of Ecuador. and in BiH Z.Š., who are also suspected of being members of an organized crime group, which, according to the prosecution, is linked to the seizure of around 505 kilograms of cocaine from Ecuador in the Croatian port of Ploče in March 2021.
“A search has been launched for the organizers V.M. and U.K., while members of the organized crime group M.L., M.J. and A.I., who were deprived of their liberty in May 2023, are already in the detention units of the Special Department of the Higher Court in Belgrade,” the statement said.
During the search of the apartments of the suspected members of the group, the police found weapons and a large amount of ammunition, and several expensive vehicles, watches, as well as large amounts of money were also seized.
The suspects will be taken to the Public Prosecutor’s Office for Organized Crime with a criminal complaint, after which they will be questioned.
