PM says "media attacks" directed against him

PIROT, BELGRADE PM and Interior Minister Ivica Dacic has denied that his former chief of staff Branko Lazarevic had ties to fugitive suspected drug lord Darko Saric. Speaking on Sunday in Pirot, Dacic said that reports to the contrary were a "setup" targeting him personally, rather than Lazarevic. PM says "media attacks" directed against him "In this manner, someone is trying to say - you should not behave like this, because we too have something to announce about you," Dacic told journalists, commenting on media reports. A B92 report quoted an Interior Ministry (MUP) report which determined that Lazarevic, who was Dacic's chief of staff in the previous government, was associated with Saric's criminal group. Dacic stressed that he would "not let anyone discredit him", adding that media reports "had nothing to do with his former chief of staff, but with him personally". "This is an attempt to say - they cannot run this government any more. See how compromised they are," Dacic said. The prime minister asked "why some things that happened two or three years ago are back in circulation again, unless they are directed against the government". "Why is this mentioned again, especially now, ahead of the election for a new police director?" he wondered, and also asked why Lazarevic was not under arrest, "if this was true". The prime minister stressed that "nobody was stronger than the state", and noted that he several weeks ago asked for information on who was associated with Saric, and that the police, the security services and the military intelligence said that "there was nothing". According to Dacic, he "read nothing new" in the media coverage of the allegations, and added that Lazarevic "could not have betrayed any official secrets, because he had no access to any". Lazarevic is now an attache to the Serbian embassy in Athens, Greece, having left Dacic's cabinet in 2010. Neither Vucic nor outgoing Police Director Milorad Veljovic wished to make any statements for B92 regarding the allegations. According to Tanjug, Dacic also said that he discussed this case with First Deputy Prime Minister and Head of the Security Service Coordination Bureau Aleksandar Vucic, adding that they "both agreed that all facts need to be determined". According to the report, filed on January 13 by the MUP Criminal Investigations Police, Lazarevic communicated with two members of Saric's gang - Zoran Copic and Radovan Strbac - to warn them that the police were wiretapping and following the gang. The report also implicated Lazarevic in the Mitrosrem company acquisition, "when he was mentioned by Nikola Dimitrijevic", who was later sentenced to two years under house arrest for buying the company on behalf of Saric. B92 originally reported about this three and a half years ago, when then Interior Minister and Deputy PM Dacuc denied that his chief of staff had any ties with Saric. According to Blic daily reporter Vuk Cvijic, Lazarevic is suspected of passing on official secrets rather than being a member of the gang. "This is so far pre-criminal procedure - there's nothing concrete, no indictment, no request to carry out an investigation, no charges filed by the police. Making contact in itself doesn't have to be the proof of anything. There's examples of many people making contact with legally convicted persons, Legija, Rade Markovic," the journalist noted, and added that those people had not been investigated and put on trial. (Tanjug, file) B92 Tanjug

PM says "media attacks" directed against him

"In this manner, someone is trying to say - you should not behave like this, because we too have something to announce about you," Dačić told journalists, commenting on media reports.

A B92 report quoted an Interior Ministry (MUP) report which determined that Lazarević, who was Dačić's chief of staff in the previous government, was associated with Šarić's criminal group.

Dačić stressed that he would "not let anyone discredit him", adding that media reports "had nothing to do with his former chief of staff, but with him personally".

"This is an attempt to say - they cannot run this government any more. See how compromised they are," Dačić said.

The prime minister asked "why some things that happened two or three years ago are back in circulation again, unless they are directed against the government".

"Why is this mentioned again, especially now, ahead of the election for a new police director?" he wondered, and also asked why Lazarević was not under arrest, "if this was true".

The prime minister stressed that "nobody was stronger than the state", and noted that he several weeks ago asked for information on who was associated with Šarić, and that the police, the security services and the military intelligence said that "there was nothing".

According to Dačić, he "read nothing new" in the media coverage of the allegations, and added that Lazarević "could not have betrayed any official secrets, because he had no access to any".

Lazarević is now an attache to the Serbian embassy in Athens, Greece, having left Dačić's cabinet in 2010.

Neither Vučić nor outgoing Police Director Milorad Veljović wished to make any statements for B92 regarding the allegations.

According to Tanjug, Dačić also said that he discussed this case with First Deputy Prime Minister and Head of the Security Service Coordination Bureau Aleksandar Vučić, adding that they "both agreed that all facts need to be determined".

According to the report, filed on January 13 by the MUP Criminal Investigations Police, Lazarević communicated with two members of Šarić's gang - Zoran Ćopić and Radovan Štrbac - to warn them that the police were wiretapping and following the gang.

The report also implicated Lazarević in the Mitrosrem company acquisition, "when he was mentioned by Nikola Dimitrijević", who was later sentenced to two years under house arrest for buying the company on behalf of Šarić.

B92 originally reported about this three and a half years ago, when then Interior Minister and Deputy PM Dačuć denied that his chief of staff had any ties with Šarić.

According to Blic daily reporter Vuk Cvijić, Lazarević is suspected of passing on official secrets rather than being a member of the gang.

"This is so far pre-criminal procedure - there's nothing concrete, no indictment, no request to carry out an investigation, no charges filed by the police. Making contact in itself doesn't have to be the proof of anything. There's examples of many people making contact with legally convicted persons, Legija, Rade Marković," the journalist noted, and added that those people had not been investigated and put on trial.