Executive Directors of the Electric Power Company of Montenegro (EPCG) Zdravko Dragas and the Montenegrin Electricity Distribution System (CEDIS) Vladimir Ivanovic have filed criminal charges against several individuals with the Vrnovo State Prosecutor's Office and the Special State Prosecutor's Office (SDT) due to, as stated, suspicion of the existence of an organized criminal group formed in connection with a court case filed against state energy companies. Zeljko Medojevic, owner of the former Podgorica company "Kvadrat Komerc".
The complaint claims that the experts and judges, together with Medojević, are part of an organized criminal group and that through the proceedings in which prosecutor Medojević claimed compensation for lost profits due to alleged interruptions in the electricity supply to the company "Kvadrat Komerc", they contributed to making decisions that led to multi-million euro damage for state-owned companies, estimated at nearly six million euros with interest.
"Vijesti" has access to this criminal report filed in mid-February.
Medojević initiated legal proceedings before the Basic Court in Podgorica, which resulted in a verdict on February 17, 2025 in favor of the company, and on December 2, 2025, the Higher Court rejected the appeal of the energy companies and confirmed the Basic Court's verdict. The energy companies filed a review of the High Court's verdict with the Supreme Court at the end of January this year.
The prosecution is requested to urgently respond to this criminal complaint because, as it is claimed, in the preparation of this crime, Medojević transferred to himself as a natural person the potential obligations of the injured parties (EPCG and CEDIS) towards the company "Kvadrat komerc" based on the contract on assignment of claims, and that enforcement proceedings were initiated at the beginning of February this year, signed by a public bailiff. Aleksandar Božović for collecting money.
The report also indicates that Medojević, through a power of attorney he gave to his lawyer, To Dejan Klikovac, distributed the money that could be collected from state-owned companies to four bank accounts in different banks in Montenegro, determining the percentages and amounts that should be paid to individual members of his family. The energy companies claim in the report that there is a suspicion that some of this money could also be intended for other persons mentioned in the report as members of an organized crime group.
"So it is necessary to block the funds in question that will be paid by forced collection from the public bailiff based on these court decisions until you make a decision on the criminal complaint or at least until the Supreme Court of Montenegro (declares) on the basis of the review of the judgment of the Higher Court in Podgorica that we filed on 26. 1. 2026, because there is a high degree of reasonable suspicion that by withdrawing funds from the bank account by the prosecutor and the persons he appointed, all of us together could end up in a situation where this criminal organization is prosecuted and the Supreme Court changes or revokes the final and enforceable judgment of the Higher Court in Podgorica, and there is nothing to sue about because there is no money," the report says, among other things.
"Vijesti" sources from the legal sector claim that the SDT can assess whether the energy companies' request is justified and ask the courts to block the money. An interlocutor from EPCG said that most of the money has not yet been withdrawn from the energy companies' accounts.
"Vijesti" is awaiting a response from SDT on how they will proceed in this case.
Connection for business premises, not for production facilities
According to the allegations in the complaint, this company, according to Medojević's testimony in the court proceedings, initially traded in children's clothing, and then expanded its business to include the production and procurement of equipment for ready-to-wear production and screen printing.
The report to the prosecution indicated that Medojević, as the owner and responsible person of the company "Kvadrat komerc" in the period from 2007 to 2015, allegedly concluded five fictitious contracts on long-term business cooperation with foreign companies, namely - "Spin Textile Group" for the amount of 5.350.000 euros (contract concluded by the end of 2013), "MIR-COM" for the amount of 11.343.750 euros (by the end of 2014), "MIKRO MODELI" for the amount of 7.272.500 euros (by the end of 2014), "Wash Garment Industry" for the amount of 3.012.500 euros (by the end of 2015) and "Maestral DOOEL Kočani - EDB MK" for the amount of 525.000 euros (by the end of 2015), which amounts to a total of 27.503.750 euros. euros.
It is further alleged that Medojević concluded these contracts even though he knew that in 2004 EPCG, at his request, had issued him a permit to connect to the electricity distribution network for a business premises with an approved billing power of 8 kW, and not for a production facility, and that Medojević did not have sufficient approved peak power to meet his obligations to foreign partners. EPCG and CEDIS were one company at the time this permit was issued.
"The suspect did not, at any time from the start of production in 2004 until 2012, when he closed the company (in liquidation proceedings), file a claim for damages with the injured parties EPCG and CEDIS due to periodic interruptions in the supply of electricity, nor did he submit any evidence on this matter during the entire duration of the proceedings. And it is indisputable that the suspect could not fulfill his obligations based on the conclusion of five contracts because only one contract was initiated and partially implemented with the company "Spin Tehtil Group" in the amount of 5,35 million euros, in the amount of 1,78 million, and was not implemented in the amount of 3,56 million. The other four contracts did not even begin to be implemented, so in this regard the plaintiff (Medojević) is not entitled to compensation for damages based on lost profits, according to the law," the report to the SDT states.
The report indicates that at the hearing on December 7, 2023, the prosecutor submitted to the court an export declaration - shipping note number 55/10 dated July 1, 2010, which shows that most of the machinery and equipment of the company "Kvadrat Komerc" was exported to Serbia in accordance with the invoice. Therefore, the report raises the question of how the suspect, after no longer having production machinery since mid-2010, was able to organize production and fulfill contractual obligations to five foreign companies in the total value of about 25 million euros in the period from mid-2010 to the end of 2015.
It is further stated that the company “Kvadrat Komerc” had a founding capital of one euro and no working capital, which, according to the allegations in the report, raises questions about how it could have produced the goods stipulated in those contracts, as well as on what basis the business partners could have had confidence that the company would fulfill its contractual obligations. According to the allegations in the report, all of this indicates that these were fictitious legal and commercial transactions, the purpose of which was to secure the acquisition of unlawful material benefits.
The report states that the experts in the proceedings produced findings and opinions on the basis of which, as the applicant claims, the amount of alleged damage and lost profits of the company "Kvadrat Komerc" was determined, although, according to the allegations in the report, the facts about the technical possibilities of production and the implementation of the contract were ignored, and that the judges, despite these circumstances (technical possibilities of production), rendered verdicts.
It is claimed that one of the experts determined that the company had a minimal profit percentage in relation to the purchase and sale value of goods in the period 2008-2010, and that for the period after that, he estimated that this profit could have increased drastically in the following years, which the courts allegedly accepted.
"Therefore, the economic expert determined that the plaintiff's profit in 2010 of 2.902,00 euros or 1,53% compared to the purchase value of the goods in the amount of 189.056,00 euros... determined that the plaintiff's profit (net profit) was 58,4% compared to the purchase value of the goods, which means that compared to 2010, the profit rate increased by an incredible 7.692%," the report states.
It is added that the expert witness "behaved more like an alchemist than an economic expert, because he 'proved' that he could easily turn 2.902,00 euros into 3.093.489,09 euros to 4.537.642,71 euros."
"We would like to point out that the first suspect (prosecutor Medojević) has not proven or documented the merits of the claim, not even in the part that he suffered any damage due to the defendants' fault due to occasional interruptions in the supply of electricity, nor has he submitted any evidence of a possible malfunction in the electricity distribution network. In the defendants' official records - there is no documentation from which it could be seen that the plaintiff at any time addressed the defendants with a request for compensation for damage due to a "fault" in the network, nor has he proven in any way how possible occasional interruptions in the supply of electricity affected the plaintiff's work," the explanation of the criminal complaint states.
There were no reports of network outages.
These allegations, it is added, are best confirmed by the fact that Medojević testified at one of the hearings that he founded the company "Kvadrat Komerc" on May 4, 2000, that the company was engaged in the sale of children's clothing, while in 2001 it began with small-scale production, which he expanded in 2004 by building a business building in the "Grbe" neighborhood in Danilovgrad and purchasing equipment for ready-to-wear production and screen printing.
It is further indicated that Medojević stated in his statement that he had established several plants in that facility, with an area of about 600 square meters, for which he had taken out a loan of about 600.000 euros. Regarding the electricity supply, he said that in the beginning the supply was stable, with occasional short interruptions, while from 2010 to 2012, according to him, it was difficult, after which he shut down production in 2012.
The applicant, however, states that EPCG issued Medojević an electricity permit in 2004 for connection to the grid for a business premises with an approved power of 8 kW, which, it is claimed, was not sufficient for the production facility or for the implementation of contracts worth around 25 million euros with foreign partners.
"If we connect these two, the entire construction of the court on which it based its verdict falls apart, because it clearly shows - that the plaintiff did not have an approved (installed) peak power to carry out its production at full capacity - nor could it have fulfilled its contractual obligations with foreign partners in the amount of 25 million euros with the approved peak power of 8 kW, given that the plaintiff, at its request, received an electrical energy consent with an approved calculation power for the business premises of 8 kW, which is enough to operate 4 irons simultaneously, provided that not a single light bulb is turned on, as every student of the Faculty of Electrical Engineering knows. This is especially true given the fact that the plaintiff built the facility - a production plant, so it is logical - that the calculation power of 8 kW (for the business premises) certainly does not correspond to the purpose of the plaintiff's facility, the equipment and machines that he purchased for the production of children's clothing, the number of employees ...", it is emphasized in the explanation of the complaint to the prosecution, which adds that all this was confirmed by an expert technological and textile professions.
If Medojević had ever contacted EPCG to report a network failure, as stated in the report, the energy company would have been obliged to go to the scene together with an expert of the appropriate profession and determine any possible damage.
It's not hard to find a "negotiable" expert witness
The report to the prosecutor states that it is "incredible that an amateurishly deliberate fraud by a prosecutor with the support of corrupt economic experts was accepted by the first instance court and certified by the High Court Council."
"We believe that the behavior and actions of all suspects meet the conditions for the application of Article 401a of the Criminal Code of Montenegro, because it is clearly documented that all suspects committed the criminal offenses charged against them in this criminal report, in an organized manner, and that each member of the criminal organization had a predetermined and obviously doable task and role, and that there is an obvious influence of the criminal organization on the judicial authorities," the report states.
It is pointed out that everyone has the right to file a lawsuit and seek compensation for damages if they believe that any of their rights have been violated on that basis.
"Today, everyone is an expert witness and it is not (unfortunately) difficult to find a "agreed" court expert to help you realize your intentions, but the active and conscious participation of the court in this amateur and cheap fraud is a defeat for the entire judicial system in Montenegro, so we believe that you should take this fact into account when deciding on this criminal complaint," the complaint states.
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