The Kavački and Skaljar clans are the most dangerous of the ten high-risk organized criminal groups that originate from the territory of Montenegro, but operate throughout the globe.
According to public data from the Risk Assessment of Serious and Organized Crime (SOCTA 2021), 10 high-risk organized crime groups are active in Montenegro, the largest of which has over 30 members.
The interlocutor of Vijesti from the security sector claims that in the secret part of that document, in addition to the bandits and the skalars, whose dominant activity is the smuggling of cocaine, the investigators also recorded that this is the main "business" of three other organized criminal groups - the Bars, which is divided into three faction, Budva, which he manages Marko Ljubiša - Kan and Pljeval, of which he is the leader Darko Saric.
"Cocaine smuggling is also done by the Tuzana clan - brothers Leona i Viktor Drešaj, with the fact that it is not their primary activity, but the smuggling of marijuana, tobacco and tobacco products. OKG from Rožaj, which it manages Safet Kalić, dominantly switched to marijuana smuggling, and the clan Vasa Street, who pulls the strings from Podgorica, predominantly specializes in international smuggling of synthetic drugs. For another Rožaj clan, of which he is the leader Asmir Kalac, it was recorded that they are the most active in heroin smuggling, while the Beranca clan Vuk Vulević is linked to the execution of blood crimes and the distribution of narcotics", claims a Vijesti source from the security sector.
Allegedly, in the secret part of the document, which was prepared by an interdepartmental team that included representatives of the intelligence sector, the Police Directorate and the Prosecutor's Office, it was recorded that apart from the two most dangerous clans - "Kavači" and "Škaljari", which number hundreds of soldiers, other criminal- groups have at least 30 members each.
The investigators also established that, after the double murder in Athens, when they were liquidated Igor Dedovic i Stevan Stamatović, from Kotor Jovan Vukotic became the absolute leader of the organized criminal group "Škaljari" and the sole decision-maker, while the situation is a little different with their rivals, the Kavčana.
"The heads of OKG 'Kavač' have been registered Radoje Switzerland, Slobodan Kascelan, Predrag Škuri Knežević, Igor Božović i Milan Vujotić. They are at the head of the pyramid, and in all places where they have subgroups, which are managed by one or two people they trust", explains the same interlocutor.
In the publicly available files, it is written that there was a decrease in the number of organized criminal groups operating in Montenegro, because in "SOCTA 2017" the existence of 11 organized criminal groups was registered.
They explain that, due to the continuous strengthening of various segments of the activities of the OKG, which is partly caused by the joining of smaller criminal groups responsible for the realization of specific criminal activities, it can be concluded that the structure of organized criminal groups has remained relatively solid:
"And that, as such, it is based on the expressed roles of leaders and high-ranking members, a clear division of tasks, specialization in the implementation of certain criminal activities and compliance with the rules of internal discipline. As in the previous period, the structure of a large number of organized criminal groups operating in the territory of Montenegro is characterized by a solid core, composed of individuals connected by family or long-term friendships, around whom a circle of permanent members is distributed, whereby these segments of the internal structure are characterized by many years of experience in implementing criminal activities on a transnational level".
They point out that a special segment of the structure is represented by various cells, that is, branches, which in some cases are specialized in carrying out specific criminal activities:
"For example, the organization of drug smuggling or the organization of serious crimes against life and limb, which are positioned at the key points of the implementation of criminal activities in Montenegro and abroad. In addition to the numerous activities of law enforcement authorities that resulted in the prosecution and deprivation of liberty of leaders and high-ranking members of organized criminal groups, a trend of constant strengthening of their internal structure was registered, through continuous engagement of new members and tighter ties with regional and transnational criminal structures. Institutions for the execution of criminal sanctions, where leaders and high-ranking members of organized criminal groups already reside, continue to represent a key 'recruitment center' for new members, through methods of providing protection, hiring lawyers, various forms of financial support and numerous other benefits, and ensure the engagement of new members ", it says in that document.
They actively participate in the production of marijuana
Montenegrin criminal groups, whose dominant activity is cocaine smuggling, have in the last few years formed a network of collaborators responsible for the distribution of narcotics in the territory of several Western European countries, and in addition, they actively participate in the production of large quantities of marijuana on plantations and in laboratories in Germany and Spain and organization of further smuggling and distribution.
The investigators in SOCTA recorded that in the conflicts between the Kavak and Skaljar clans, in the period between the publication of the two documents, more than 60 serious crimes against life and limb were committed.
"It is obvious that the escalation of the conflict between organized criminal groups has caused a change in their mode of action, so that the opposing organized criminal groups are targeting an increasing number of people, regardless of their position and role, and in some cases, the families of members are also targeted opposing OKG. In this way, the number of persons - potential victims - increases significantly, which greatly complicates the activities of the law enforcement authorities in undertaking preventive measures and actions to prevent the commission of serious crimes".
They state that an additional dimension of the seriousness of the conflict between organized criminal groups is given by the change in the mode of execution of serious crimes, which is reflected in the increasingly frequent use of explosive devices of strong destructive power, as well as in the execution of the criminal acts in question in locations that are known as locations where gathers a large number of people, which we must state, indicates an increasing recklessness in achieving the desired goal.
"Nevertheless, the mode of realization of these criminal activities with a level of recklessness that was not registered during earlier years, which was manifested through kidnappings and the application of the most brutal methods when committing serious crimes to the detriment of members of opposing organized criminal groups, is of particular concern. The very change in the mode of execution of the aforementioned criminal acts creates new challenges that are posed to the law enforcement authorities in the part related to prevention, elucidation of them and collection of appropriate evidence necessary for the continuation of procedural activities. Of particular concern is the fact that organized criminal groups also target officers of law enforcement agencies, as indicated by the processed cases in which, due to their professional involvement, the targets of planned attacks were officers of the intelligence and security sector and holders of responsible functions in the justice system and prosecutor's office".
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