Court freezes some Ulemek assets

The Special Court for Organized Crime today debated the possibility of freezing Milorad Ulemek’s assets and property. His lawyer Slobodan Milivojevic said that only a portion of his house in the Belgrade neighborhood of Cerak was today taken from him with the court's temporary decision. Court freezes some Ulemek assets The rest of the house will remain in the ownership of his wife and children. The prosecution is now expected to raise and indictment to have his property seized permanently. The prosecution suspects that Ulemek, also known as Legija, bought the house in question with ransom money paid after the kidnapping of Vuk Bajrusevic, the brother of another underworld figure, Bojana Bajrusevic. Ahead of the court's decision today, State Secretary with the Ministry of Justice Slobodan Homen told B92 that it was "not contentious" that the house in Cerak was bought via criminal activity. He also said that estimates show some EUR 50mn worth of property could be confiscated in Serbia this year by applying a law regulating seizure of property gained through criminal activities, which came into effect earlier this year. Earlier today, reports said that if Ulemek’s property is seized, it would be the first decision of the court made according to the law. Ulemek is currently serving several maximum 40-year jail terms, one of them handed down after he was found guilty of being the key conspirator in the 2003 murder of PM Zoran Djindjic.

Court freezes some Ulemek assets

The rest of the house will remain in the ownership of his wife and children.

The prosecution is now expected to raise and indictment to have his property seized permanently.

The prosecution suspects that Ulemek, also known as Legija, bought the house in question with ransom money paid after the kidnapping of Vuk Bajrušević, the brother of another underworld figure, Bojana Bajrušević.

Ahead of the court's decision today, State Secretary with the Ministry of Justice Slobodan Homen told B92 that it was "not contentious" that the house in Cerak was bought via criminal activity.

He also said that estimates show some EUR 50mn worth of property could be confiscated in Serbia this year by applying a law regulating seizure of property gained through criminal activities, which came into effect earlier this year.

Earlier today, reports said that if Ulemek’s property is seized, it would be the first decision of the court made according to the law.

Ulemek is currently serving several maximum 40-year jail terms, one of them handed down after he was found guilty of being the key conspirator in the 2003 murder of PM Zoran Đinđić.