SPO continues searches of Petar Ivanović's property, he and Katnić were detained for up to 72 hours

Officers of the Special Police Department (SPO) as part of the investigation by the Special State Prosecutor's Office (SDT) continue today with searches of the properties of suspected former Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development Petar Ivanović at at least five more locations in Podgorica and on the coast.

A large-scale case opened after the police and the prosecutor's office, during the investigation in this case, made a long list of assets, which are linked to the suspect Ivanovic or to members of his family.

Ivanović was only heard late last night at the Special State Prosecutor's Office, where he was interrogated by prosecutor Jovan Vukotić, due to the fact that SPO officers searched his villa, rich wine cellar and property in Doljani near Podgorica all day.

Ivanović was detained for up to 72 hours, and the same decision was made for the former secretary of the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development, Nemanja Katnić.

The former head of the Finance Service, Vukica Perović, was released yesterday to defend herself in further proceedings, and the same decision has been made for another former minister of agriculture, Milutin Simović.

Another former minister of that department, Budimir Mugoša, was included in the criminal report of the SPO, who came to the summons and gave a statement in the SDT after 15 pm on Friday.

The plan is for the suspects to be heard during the day by the investigating judge of the High Court, after which it will be known for whom the prosecution will seek detention or house arrest in the further course of the investigation in this case.

On Friday, the SDT stated in a statement that the SPO filed a criminal complaint, due to the existence of grounds for suspicion that the suspects had committed three extended criminal offenses of abuse of official position and two criminal offenses of abuse of official position. "The subject of the criminal complaint and proceedings is the allocation of funds to certain non-governmental organizations, in the period from April 2014 to July 2019, contrary to the Decree on the conditions, manner and dynamics of the implementation of agrarian policy measures - the Agricultural Budget for specific years, which benefited the non-governmental organizations. , and damage to the injured Montenegro was inflicted in the amount of over 300,000 euros in total," the Special State Prosecutor's Office said in a statement.