Ship sales and personnel decisions under scrutiny: SDT conducts five investigations into cases related to the Ministry of Maritime Affairs

The Special State Prosecutor's Office (SDT) has formed several criminal cases and is investigating several cases of possible illegal actions by the Ministry of Maritime Affairs and responsible persons in that department.

The SDT is also acting on a criminal complaint filed by the Ministry of Maritime Affairs last year against the now former management of the state-owned maritime company Crnogorska plovidba from Kotor, which the ministry has since completely destroyed, selling both of its ships and is now conducting the formal winding-up procedure for that company.

This was confirmed by "News" on SDT.

"Criminal cases have been opened in the SDT regarding all the events and actions you are interested in, in order to determine whether there is a basis for suspicion that a criminal offense has been committed and is being prosecuted ex officio. These are, therefore, five special criminal cases, opened between July last year and February this year, in which the investigation is ongoing, and decisions will be made after all necessary evidence, data and information have been collected and assessed," the SDT spokesperson, special prosecutor, told "Vijesti". Vukas Radonjic.

Last year, the Ministry of Maritime Affairs filed criminal charges against members of the former Board of Directors of Crnogorska plovidba, who were, in the meantime, dismissed from their positions by the Minister of Maritime Affairs Filip Radulović (PES) because the Board of Directors, led by the president, long-distance captain Jovo Lazarević, strongly opposed the ministry's strategy to "save Crnogorska plovidba" with a controversial arrangement of that and another maritime company in majority state ownership - Barska plovidba. Lazarević and his associates, as well as experts from the Association of Sea Captains of Montenegro, warned that such an arrangement had never been recorded anywhere in the history of world shipping, that it would completely disrupt the management of Crnogorska plovidba's ships and ultimately lead to their loss, sale and closure of the company. The Ministry of Maritime Affairs denied this at the time, but in the meantime, exactly the scenario predicted by Lazarević and his associates has come true. The Ministry of Maritime Affairs, however, in addition to dismissing the disobedient Board of Directors, also retaliated by filing criminal charges against Lazarević and other members of that body, accusing them of allegedly illegal work and causing great material damage to the company, which the Ministry of Maritime Affairs' action to "rescue" Crnogorska plovidba could no longer correct.

SDT spokesman Vukas Radonjić confirmed to "Vijesti" that the prosecution has also opened a criminal case and is conducting an investigation in connection with the sale of Crnogorska plovidba ships, which the new management of the company, brought in by the Ministry of Maritime Affairs after the dismissal of the old one, sold under controversial circumstances in the fall of last year for about a third less than their market value. The ships "Kotor" and "Dvadeset prvi maj" were sold for a total of 13,2 million dollars (11,3 million euros) to the Danish company "K/S Navision Group", after the executive directors of Crnogorska plovidba Vladimir Tadic, Barske plovidbe Boris Mihajlovic and the leaders of the Ministry of Maritime Affairs have been spreading information to the public for a long time about the allegedly catastrophically poor technical condition of these ships and the alleged need to sell them as soon as possible. In the meantime, a parliamentary hearing was held in the Parliament of Montenegro before the Committee on Budget, Finance and Economy, and the chairman of that committee, MP Boris Mugoša (Social Democrats) subsequently submitted to the SDT all relevant documentation it had collected about this transaction.

As part of the criminal case formed around the sale of ships, the SDT is also investigating the legality, from the point of view of the Public Procurement Law, of the engagement of the law firm VRD Legal from Podgorica for intermediary services in that deal by the company's management, which was brought in by the Ministry of Maritime Affairs after the dismissal of the old one, as well as the role of that law firm in concluding the controversial purchase agreement with the Danes.

Special Prosecutor Vukas Radonjić also confirmed that the SDT has formed a criminal case and is investigating the actions of the Ministry of Maritime Affairs in connection with last year's appointment of new examination commissions for acquiring knowledge and authorizations in maritime affairs, which operate at the Port Authorities in Kotor and Bar, or the possible falsification of the official document, "Decision on the appointment of the president, members, secretaries of examination commissions, examiners and their deputies for taking the exam for acquiring titles and authorizations on basic and special qualifications of crew members", number 08-345/25-841/1, which was issued by Minister Filip Radulović on May 13, 2025.

Last year, “Vijesti” reported on the appointment of new examination commissions that the Ministry of Maritime Affairs had falsified an official document, “Decision on the appointment of the president, members, secretaries of examination commissions, examiners and their deputies for taking the exam for acquiring the title and authorization of basic and special qualifications of crew members”. In the original Decision under the registration number 08-345/25-841/1, which was forwarded to the bodies of the ministry, the Secretary of the Ministry of Maritime Affairs, a lawyer, was listed as one of the examiners in the Commission before which exams are taken for acquiring the title of skipper of yachts up to 200 gross tons. Andrija Raznatović (PES).

However, the Ministry withdrew Ražnatović's appointment on the same day, adopting a new decision in which he was replaced as an examiner in the commission for yacht captains up to 200 GT in Bar by a lawyer. Ivan VučekovićIn order to do this, the Ministry forged an official document because it issued and registered a decision with the amended content, replacing Ražnatović with Vučeković, under the same registry number, as the previous decision from the same day in which the Secretary of the Ministry of Justice was appointed to the commission for yacht captains in Bar.

I cannot provide details of the investigation.

The SDT has formed a case and is conducting an investigation in case of doubts about the authenticity of official documentation (a certificate proving that they meet the systematization requirements regarding the length of navigation experience in an adequate capacity on board a ship) for the chief PSC inspectors of the Ministry of Maritime Affairs Željko Lompar and Novica Mijović, as "Vijesti" wrote about a few months ago.

Also, the SDT has formed a case and is conducting an investigation into the criminal complaint filed by the applicant HS from Bar against those responsible in the Human Resources Administration and the Ministry of Maritime Affairs, in connection with the appointment of Marijana Perić-Sekulović to the position of Director of the Directorate for Maritime Economy at the Ministry of Maritime Affairs in an acting, or full, mandate, due to suspicion that several criminal offenses (unlawful influence, negligent work in the service and abuse of official position) were committed in an extended period.

Special Prosecutor Vukas Radonjić, however, was unable to respond to "Vijesti's" inquiries about the measures and actions that the SDT has taken or is taking so far in all these cases involving the Ministry of Maritime Affairs and its managers.

"The companies cannot speak about the actions that are being taken or planned due to the protection of the interests of the proceedings," said the SDT spokesperson.