The Office for the Control of Foreign Assets of the US Ministry of Finance has labeled businessmen Zvonko Veselinović, his brother Žarko, Milan Radoičić, Željko Bojić and Marko Rosić for belonging to corrupt networks connected to transnational organized crime, according to the statement.
The announcement states that Zvonko Veselinović is the leader of an organized criminal group, and that he is one of the most notorious corrupt figures in Kosovo, reports N1.
It adds that his criminal group is involved in a wide-ranging bribery scheme, along with Kosovo and Serbian security officials who facilitate its illegal trade in goods, drug money and weapons between Kosovo and Serbia.
The US Treasury also indicates that the organized crime group colluded with various politicians in several mutually beneficial deals, including bribing Kosovo security officials in early 2019 to allow their smuggling operations between Serbia and Kosovo and another case of bribing Kosovo officials. border security officials in late 2017 to allow safe passage for smugglers.
N1 reports that since the end of 2017, Veselinović and his brother Žarko had agreements with politicians to help their party win the elections, ensure the political victories of their candidates and finance the candidates with large sums of money.
In return, these politicians would provide the brothers with control over certain areas for their business, as well as where they could conduct their illegal activities without interference from Serbian authorities, and would also provide proprietary business information to support the brothers' business investments.
It is added that the politicians would also reward the Veselinović brothers by working to give them the best infrastructure contracts.
Since the end of 2017, Veselinović and Žarko have been making donations to launder money obtained through criminal activities.
N1 states that Žarko was one of the leaders in Veselinović's organized criminal organization, participating together with his brother and others in smuggling activities, violent intimidation of other companies, in their construction and infrastructure projects, as well as in telecommunications development projects.
It is also added that Veselinović and his group are accused of alleged involvement in the murder of Oliver Ivanović, leader of the Freedom, Democracy and Justice party, in January 2018.
Veselinović and his associates in the criminal group, Milan Radoičić, Željko Bojić and Marko Rosić were all named in the indictment for the murder of Ivanović for their role in it.
The announcement states that Radoičić was Veselinović's deputy and was even the leader of that organized crime group when Veselinović briefly retired. Radoičić, the vice-president of the Serbian List, was also, it is added, the head of arms smuggling in Veselinović's organized crime group.
Brothers Veselinović and Radoičić were designated by executive order 13818 as foreigners who are or were leaders or officials of entities, including a government entity, that was involved, or whose members were involved, in corruption, including the alienation of state property. expropriation of private property for personal gain, corruption related to government contracts or exploitation of natural resources, or bribery related to their business.
Bojić was marked as having materially helped, sponsored or provided financial, material or technological support, or goods or services for Veselinović.
In addition, the US Treasury Department named nine associates who worked for or on behalf of Veselinović: Rosić, Andrija Bojić, Srđan Vulović, Milan Mihajlović, Miljan and Miljojko Radisavljević, Radovan Radić, Siniša Nedeljković, and Radule Stević.
Also, four companies owned or controlled by Veselinović have been marked: Inkop DOO Ćuprija (Serbia), Civija komerc (Serbia), SZTR Prizma BI (Kosovo), Ferrari Preduzeće za serviči za velične vehcije SH.A. (Kosovo).
The US Treasury has identified three companies owned or controlled by Inkop: Betonjerka DOO Aleksinac (Serbia), Dolly Bell DOO (Novi Belgrade, Serbia), Novi Pazar - Put DOO (Novi Pazar, Serbia).
Two entities owned or controlled by Žarko Veselinović were also marked: Žarko Veselinović BI, STR Kristal (Kosovo) and Nautikacentar DOO (Croatia).
Also marked are three companies owned or controlled by Stević: DOO Rad 028 Zvečan (Serbia), Radule Stević BI, PTP Rad (Kosovo), Rad DOO (Kosovo).
Seven entities owned or controlled by Nedeljković were also marked: Markom Metal Commerce DOO Zvečan (Serbia), Metal-Robna kuća (Serbia), Siniša Nedeljković BI, PTP Metal (Kosovo), PP Robna kuća Metal BI (Kosovo), Farma Izvori BI (Kosovo), Department store Metal DOO (Kosovo) and Siniša Nedeljković IB (Kosovo).
Two companies controlled or owned by Miljan Radisavljević are also marked: DOO MM Kom Inter Blue Donji Jasenovik (Serbia), PP Babudovac BI (Kosovo).
The US Ministry of Finance also designated three companies owned or controlled by other members of this organized crime group: DOO Babudovac Brnjak (Serbia), owned or controlled by Miljojko Radisavljević, then Garac Inženjering OOD (Bulgaria), owned or controlled by Radojčić and Radovan Radić BI, PP, Eu Rr Gradnja (Kosovo), owned or controlled by Radić.
The US Treasury Department's Department of Foreign Affairs has designated 16 individuals and 24 entities in several countries in Europe and the Western Hemisphere under Executive Order 13818, which targets those who have committed corruption and serious human rights violations.
"Transnational organized crime and corruption often go hand in hand with the effects of mass destabilization on the rule of law and democracy. The US Treasury Department will continue to aggressively break the ties between transnational criminal organizations and corrupt activities, especially those in positions of public trust," he said. Director of the Office for the Control of Foreign Assets Andrea Gacki.
BIRN and CINS also wrote about the dubious affairs of Radoičić and Veselinović, as well as Veselinović's wife.
BIRN wrote three years ago about the business of Milan Radoičić and Zvonk Veselinović, which companies they were connected with and how they used the north of Kosovo and Kosovo as a whole to increase the value of their businesses and property.
As can be learned from the first-instance acquittal verdict of the High Court in Belgrade from February 2015, as BIRN reminds, they were accused of inciting Dragan Ćurčić to keep 32 Hippo Alpe Adia Lizing trucks after the termination of the leasing contract. and handed them over to Radoičić and his godfather Veselinović for use.
The court sentenced Ćurčić to three and a half years in prison. Acquitting part of the verdict for Milan Radoičić and Zvonko Veselinović, the Court of Appeal confirmed it, and returned the proceedings for Ćurčić to the beginning, after which he was sentenced to three years in prison.
As BIRN wrote, the judgment he received based on a request for access to information of public importance "introduces us to the murky world of Serbian entrepreneurship in which deals are concluded after drinks in a tavern on Kopaonik, where debts are broken by using other people's property, where lucrative They receive road construction and maintenance jobs through the "connection", where at the same time the Serbs in Kosovo were defended, and behind that story they helped in the construction of the highway in Kosovo under the administration of the Albanians..."
It is known, according to BIRN; that Veselinović and Radoičić have been in business for a long time, that they are connected to some of the largest companies in Serbia, that their partners were seen by leasing companies and banks as VIP clients, and that, in the end, it turns out that the indictment against them was a politically motivated gesture and that as such, with the change of government, "ended up in the dustbin" of the special court for organized crime, while the godfathers came out clean-handed and succeeded in the years after that to increase their wealth and influence.
At the end of July of this year, CINS wrote in an article titled "Zvonko Veselinović's wife went into business with Nikola Petrović" about how Ljiljana Božović bought a share of the company from Nikola Petrović, the godfather of Serbian President Aleksandar Vučić, and thus entered the business with solar energy.
In July of this year, Nikola Petrović sold 25 percent of the ownership of Storenergy from Kragujevac to the wife of Zvonk Veselinović, Ljiljana Božović. According to the contract on the transfer of ownership, she has six months to pay 12 million dinars.
Petrović and Ljiljana Božović now have the same share of ownership, while the co-owners of the company are Marko Vuksanović and British citizen Amarjit Singh Riyait also with 25 percent each.
According to financial reports, Storenergy ended last year with a loss of about 30 million dinars.
Nikola Petrović did not want to speak to CINS about this.
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