The presentation of closing arguments at the trial of Darko Šarić and a group of his 16 associates accused of laundering 22 million euros in Serbia was postponed again today, reports B92.
The delay occurred due to the absence of certain defense attorneys and the accused, so the prosecution for organized crime requested that the proceedings be separated in relation to them in order to start with the closing arguments.
The trial was postponed until Friday, when the court's decision on the separation of proceedings against Andrija Krlović and Marko Dabović is expected.
They were absent today - one lawyer who is on annual vacation, the other, who did not justify his absence, was fined 100.000 dinars.
Dabović and his lawyer from Montenegro could not come to the trial, and Dabović submitted medical documentation that he was ill.
In order for the trial to take place, it is necessary for all the defendants and their defense attorneys to be present, and the court has the possibility to separate the proceedings and continue with the trial in relation to those who are absent.
By the way, this is the 24th time the money laundering trial has been postponed.
Šarić was sentenced to 2018 years in prison in December 15 in another case for organizing a cocaine smuggling group and is now awaiting the decision of the Court of Appeal on appeals in that case.
By the way, the closing arguments in the money laundering trial have been postponed since September 2019.
At the end of January, it was postponed due to the absence of Šarić's ex officio defense attorney, who was assigned to him last fall, after the accused canceled the power of attorney for all his chosen lawyers.
Due to the questioning of the power of attorney, the trial was postponed for more than two months, and among the reasons for the postponement were the requests of this accused to disqualify the president of the court council, Siniša Petrović, none of which was accepted.
After the closing statements of the prosecution, the accused and their lawyers, the court will schedule the pronouncement of the first-instance verdict.
In addition to Šarić, 16 other people were charged with money laundering in Serbia, by injecting "dirty money" into legal channels. The prosecution claims that Saric and the others "laundered" about 22 million euros, earned by selling cocaine, and the accused denied this.
According to the indictment for money laundering, money from the sale of cocaine that was procured in South American countries was transferred to Serbia through offshore companies and paid into the accounts of local companies and individual banks. These funds were used for the privatization of social enterprises, but also for the purchase of real estate and land.
The money was invested, among other things, in the hotel "Putnik" in Novi Sad, "Mitrosrem" from Sremska Mitrovica, "Palić" from Subotica, numerous properties in Zlatibor. The defendants, however, defend themselves that they invested in companies and land, but also that it was legally earned money.
In addition to Šarić, the accused in this case are Nebojša Jestrović, Andrija Krlović, Predrag Milosavljević, Radovan Štrbac, Zoran Ćopić, Marinka Vučetić, Dubravka Štrbac, Stevica Kostić, Boban Stojiljković, Bojan Stanojković, Erdin Aguš, Goran Vučković, Nebojša Spasić, Nemanja Krstajić, Goran Bogdanović and Marko Dabović.
After several years on the run, Šarić surrendered to the Serbian authorities on March 18, 2014, after which he was arrested and has been in custody ever since.
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