Connections between crime groups investigated

Investigation will show connection between members of Zemun Clan Milos Simovic and Sretko Kalinic and other criminal groups. This is according to Justice Ministry State Secretary Slobodan Homen, who spoke for B92 TV late on Monday. Connections between crime groups investigated He said that chances were slim that the two Zemun gang members would become witness-associates. Kalinic, a Croatian citizen, is currently in a Zagreb hospital, after he was allegedly shot and wounded by Simovic. Kalinic cannot be extradited to Serbia under Croatia's current legislation. Simovic was arrested by Serbian police as he tried to cross the border with Croatia. Both men were tried in absentia in Belgrade and sentenced to 30 years in prison for their role in the 2003 Djindjic assassination, and to a further 40 years in prison for their role in 19 other murders. Homen pointed out that he expected to find out whether Simovic and Kalinic were “getting help from someone from the government” and added that he was certain that the investigation would show their connection with other criminal groups, including that of Darko Saric. Saric is suspected of being the mastermind behind last year's attempt to smuggle 2.7 tons of cocaine from South America to Europe. He has been indicted in Serbia and is currently a fugitive. The state secretary said that it “did not make sense” that the pair of Zemun gangsters spent the last seven years hiding, with the wife of one of them occasionally taking them “a hundred or two hundred euros, without being monitored by police”. “It's far more logical that the information we got from the underground is accurate – that they were doing jobs and were financed by other criminal groups,“ said Homen. According to him, it is also important to find out whether the pair “had support from someone inside the government”. “Unfortunately, our priority was solving the murder of our prime minister and I think that it's in every government's interest to investigate that to the end. That's exactly why their testimonies could be interesting, to see who was helping them, who was cooperating and if it leads to the representatives of authority from the time when the investigation slowed down, I think that would be the right path and the right message,“ the state secretary pointed out. Homen also announced that an agreement between Serbia and Croatia on mutual extraditions of citizens could come into effect by the end of the month.

Connections between crime groups investigated

He said that chances were slim that the two Zemun gang members would become witness-associates.

Kalinić, a Croatian citizen, is currently in a Zagreb hospital, after he was allegedly shot and wounded by Simović. Kalinić cannot be extradited to Serbia under Croatia's current legislation.

Simović was arrested by Serbian police as he tried to cross the border with Croatia.

Both men were tried in absentia in Belgrade and sentenced to 30 years in prison for their role in the 2003 Đinđić assassination, and to a further 40 years in prison for their role in 19 other murders.

Homen pointed out that he expected to find out whether Simović and Kalinić were “getting help from someone from the government” and added that he was certain that the investigation would show their connection with other criminal groups, including that of Darko Šarić.

Šarić is suspected of being the mastermind behind last year's attempt to smuggle 2.7 tons of cocaine from South America to Europe. He has been indicted in Serbia and is currently a fugitive.

The state secretary said that it “did not make sense” that the pair of Zemun gangsters spent the last seven years hiding, with the wife of one of them occasionally taking them “a hundred or two hundred euros, without being monitored by police”.

“It's far more logical that the information we got from the underground is accurate – that they were doing jobs and were financed by other criminal groups,“ said Homen.

According to him, it is also important to find out whether the pair “had support from someone inside the government”.

“Unfortunately, our priority was solving the murder of our prime minister and I think that it's in every government's interest to investigate that to the end. That's exactly why their testimonies could be interesting, to see who was helping them, who was cooperating and if it leads to the representatives of authority from the time when the investigation slowed down, I think that would be the right path and the right message,“ the state secretary pointed out.

Homen also announced that an agreement between Serbia and Croatia on mutual extraditions of citizens could come into effect by the end of the month.