Montenegrin clans that smuggle cocaine and commit serious crimes - murders - have become a very serious security risk for a large number of European countries during the last few years.
This was assessed in the Risk Assessment of Serious and Organized Crime (SOCTA 2021) by the authorities in the security sector, who drafted that document.
Ten high-risk organized criminal groups were registered in the document prepared by the National Interdepartmental Team, which includes representatives of the Police Administration, the National Security Agency, the Revenue and Customs Administration, the Supreme and Special State Prosecutor's Offices.
Their dominant activity is drug smuggling, and investigators point out that they deal with everyone who "interferes" in their business - members of opposing clans and their own clans, as well as law enforcement officials:
"What is indicated by the processed cases in which, due to professional involvement, the targets of planned attacks were officials of the intelligence and security sector and holders of responsible positions in the justice and prosecution systems".
The signatories of the document emphasize that, from the security aspect and the level of social danger, it must be emphasized that organized criminal groups from Montenegro, which carry out their activities in the field of cocaine smuggling, are characterized by a strategic commitment to the use of various forms of violence:
"Which often and to a significant extent affects the assessment of the overall security situation in the country".
Huge earnings
The authorities also recorded that the strategic direction of organized criminal groups from the Western Balkans is to establish a monopolistic position in the smuggling of cocaine from South America to Europe, but also what the consequences are.
"Taking into account the fact that the activity of transnational cocaine smuggling generates enormous profits that are measured in tens of millions of euros, as well as the strategic orientation of organized criminal groups from the Western Balkans to establish a monopoly position, the consequences of this criminal activity are reflected in the execution of serious crimes against life and bodies aimed at members of opposing organized criminal groups, and often at their own members, as well as law enforcement officers".
In that part of the document, it is particularly emphasized that, due to the highly developed geographical dimension of operations, organized criminal groups from Montenegro have become a very serious security risk for a large number of European countries during the reporting period (2017-2021).
The appearance that the clans are weakened
In the latest Assessment, it was emphasized that the power of criminal structures and their influence are significantly increased by the accumulation of capital, which is placed in legal flows through numerous economic and business transactions and economic branches.
They also state that, in addition to corrupt activities, this has a significant impact on the positioning of criminals within various segments of everyday life.
The record seizures of cocaine and the multi-year conflict between two Montenegrin clans did not, the authorities explain, weaken these organized criminal groups.
"Although it can be concluded that organized criminal groups have been weakened due to the significant activities of law enforcement authorities that resulted in record seizures of cocaine, as well as due to long-standing mutual conflicts, and analyzing the current trends in the activities of organized criminal groups from Montenegro and related structures from other countries region, their further strengthening can be expected, especially due to the fact that during the reporting period they reached a significant level of organizational and financial stability, as well as the establishment of very strong connections with criminal structures in South American countries," the SOCTA 2021 document says.
It was explained that significant financial power, a solid hierarchical organization, a large number of different branches, i.e. cells capable of independently carrying out criminal activities, but also a wide circle of potential collaborators specialized in the realization of specific tasks and parallel smuggling operations, are just some of the factors that will in the future period to influence the presence of organized criminal groups from Montenegro on the transnational smuggling market.
Smuggling routes flourish
Organized criminal groups procure cocaine in South American countries - Brazil, Argentina, Peru, Colombia and Bolivia. Smuggling routes involve direct smuggling to the countries of Western and Central Europe, while significant quantities are smuggled from South to Central America.
It was clarified that the route by which drug smugglers transfer drugs from Central America across the ocean to the countries of Western and Central Europe is used to the greatest extent possible, and that the route that involves the smuggling of cocaine from the countries of South America via West and Central Africa to Europe is used to a lesser extent.
"While the route South America - South Africa - Middle East/Southeast Asia - Southeastern Europe is used even less frequently".
Everything that organized criminal groups do has made cocaine more available in Europe, the document indicated.
"The modalities, routes and networks used by criminal structures involved in cocaine trafficking continue to evolve, with public indications of diversification and increasing levels of efficiency. Factors such as globalization, interconnection and digital technological development of various segments of society, along with certain demographic changes, are factors that could accelerate the expansion of the cocaine market in the coming period. Criminal structures significantly improved the potential of the smuggling chain directed towards Europe, which at the same time enabled a higher level of availability of cocaine to consumers throughout Europe".
Balkan mafia suppressed "N Dangreta"
The document states that significant changes in Colombia's criminal market necessitated the establishment of new collaborative networks:
"Which enabled criminal groups from the Western Balkans, as well as criminal groups from the Albanian-speaking area, to consolidate their positions and suppress intermediaries from this activity. The aforementioned changes also significantly affected the position of once very strong criminal networks that controlled smuggling across the Atlantic, such as the Italian N Dangreta, so through the involvement of other criminal structures there was an increase in the availability of cocaine on the European market."
It was explained that the increased intensity of container traffic with a focus on Rotterdam, Antwerp and Hamburg has again contributed to these regions assuming primacy over the Iberian Peninsula as a key entry point for cocaine into Europe. They also claim that around 97 percent of the cocaine intended for the European market is seized in all countries of Western and Central Europe.
According to data from 2019, which are in the document, the largest amounts of cocaine were seized in the Netherlands - 65 tons, Belgium - 44 tons and Spain 38 tons.
This, it was clarified, represents 69 percent of the total seized cocaine in Europe.
World mobsters learn from Montenegrins
Authorities point out that cocaine is most often smuggled through ports in the Mediterranean, and that the entry points are ports in Albania, Montenegro, Slovenia and Croatia.
The expensive white powder is transferred from there via overland smuggling routes, most often by freighters used to transport various types of goods, most often food products, fruits and vegetables.
"Within the borders of the region, passenger cars, buses and trucks are used to transport cocaine. When cocaine is delivered from the countries of the final destination to the countries of the region, passenger motor vehicles are primarily used for the purpose of transport".
Investigators registered an increasing trend of joint participation of criminal structures from the countries of the Western Balkans, which was also manifested through the joint use of resources, the so-called "crowdsourcing" - a method present at the global level:
"Which was partly taken over by organized criminal groups from Montenegro, where the internal structure of these organizations consists of persons from Montenegro, Serbia, Croatia, Slovenia, Albania and Bosnia and Herzegovina. In order to occupy positions on the criminal market that will enable them to control various markets, criminal structures from the Western Balkans have established their collaborative networks in locations that were not considered 'traditional strongholds', such as Africa, Asia and Australia".
Explosive devices are made by ex-warriors and trained recruits
The Montenegrin security services have registered that members of organized criminal groups from Montenegro cooperate with persons from the Western Balkan countries who, during the war in Yugoslavia, gained experience in making explosive devices.
Apart from them, the explosive devices they use in confrontations are also made by their members who have been "educated" for it on the Internet.
The Assessment also states that, in addition to firearms, a high security risk is also the use of improvised explosive devices of strong destructive power, usually composed of several components, some of which are intended for daily use in various situations.
"There have been registered cases of cooperation between members of organized criminal groups from Montenegro and persons from the Western Balkans who, during the war in the former Yugoslavia, gained knowledge and experience in making explosive devices, while in some cases, usually less experienced persons who were recruited from by organized criminal groups to connect the components of explosive devices was educated through the use of materials available on the Internet", writes SOCTA 2021.
Cocaine is mixed with creatine, tetramysol, norcocaine...
According to data available to the security sector, there has been a slight increase in cocaine users in Montenegro.
"While the percentage of cocaine users is at the level of 10 to 20 percent compared to the total number of users of all types of intoxicating drugs".
It was clarified that the cocaine intended for the Montenegrin market is characterized by an extremely high degree of purity.
"Which in the largest number of treated cases is over 90 percent, and the most common substances used for dilution are creatine, tetramysol, norcocaine, anhydroecgonine, cinnamoylcocaine and ecgonine methyl ester," it says in SOCTA 2021.
They use smuggled weapons in confrontations
Organized criminal groups that focus their dominant criminal activity on arms smuggling are not recognized in Montenegro, but use smuggled weapons in confrontations, writes SOCTA 2021.
The authorities, however, state that in Montenegro, as well as in other countries of the Western Balkans, there are still significant amounts of firearms that are primarily linked to conflicts in the area of the former Yugoslavia.
"With regard to firearms smuggling activities in Montenegro, there are no recognized organized criminal groups that focus their dominant criminal activity on arms smuggling, but to the greatest extent it is about individual cases in which the weapons are not intended for further resale, but exclusively serve the needs of members of the OKG" , the document says.
It was clarified that, in some cases, the smuggling of weapons is connected with the smuggling of narcotics and people and that, quite often, the same actors use the same smuggling routes.
"Cases of converting gas/starter weapons into firearms, which, most often due to unreliability, are not used to commit serious crimes against life and limb" have also been registered.
They control the procurement, transport and delivery of drugs
Montenegrin organized criminal groups, which have been involved in transnational cocaine smuggling for many years, control all phases of that business - from procurement to delivery, SOCTA 2021 writes.
Criminals from Bosnia and Herzegovina, Slovenia, and Croatia work for them, and together they are part of wider criminal networks composed of structures originating from the countries of the Western Balkans and which during the previous period occupied a very significant position on the transnational criminal market.
"In which they control all stages of the smuggling process, starting with the procurement and loading of cocaine in the countries of South America, through the organization of transport and delivery in the countries of Europe, but also to a significant extent developed networks in charge of distribution at the local level in the countries of Western Europe".
In the documents, it is written that the local OKG is characterized by a clear hierarchical structure, often with the distribution of power between several persons who have the status of leaders:
"In addition to the internal organization, which implies the existence of different cells, that is, branches, stationed in several countries where organized criminal groups carry out their activities, with clearly divided roles of all members, and which are often specialized in the realization of specific criminal activities".
The authorities also registered that criminal groups from Bosnia and Herzegovina, Slovenia and Croatia often act as branches or cells of organized criminal groups from Montenegro and Serbia.
Ships, trucks and planes carry the white powder
Organized criminal groups from Montenegro and Serbia have their cells in Bosnia and Herzegovina, Slovenia and Croatia, and each of them has special responsibilities. Following their "work", the authorities registered that they were smuggling cocaine on luxury ships and jet planes.
"In the aforementioned constellation, the 'power' of the criminal group from Croatia, in addition to active participation in various stages of smuggling, is also responsible for the production and procurement of forged travel documents, while the criminal group from Slovenia is responsible for smuggling using road transport, but also for providing logistical support for the purpose of the stay of members of organized criminal groups from Montenegro and Serbia and the coordination of criminal activities throughout Europe," the files say.
Related Articles
It was also clarified that local criminals are continuously smuggling cocaine by transoceanic cargo ships:
"While a certain amount of cocaine is also smuggled on luxury ships intended for cruise trips. The trend of using smaller vessels was also registered, as well as the still uninvestigated cases of using smaller aircraft - jet planes".
See more:
Download the app and follow the news
FOLLOW US ON
