Controversial businessman accuses politicians

BELGRADE Controversial Serbian businessman Stanko "Cane" Subotic denied at the Special Court on Monday that he organized a cigarette smuggling ring in the 1990s. Instead, he told the court the trial against him was "forged so that politicians could demand money from him." Controversial businessman accuses politicians Subotic said that the campaign and accusations against him started in the media in 2000s, so that the government could seize his money and property. “The then interior minister Dusan Mihajlovic launched the investigation on cigarette smuggling in 2002, and at the same time he came to blackmail me and demand a lot of money to prevent the investigation against me,” Subotic told the court seven years after the proceedings against him were launched in 2006, Tanjug has reported. He noted that other politicians also visited him before the proceedings in 2006, saying that they will solve the investigation matter with certain concessions such as money or other modes of compensation. Noting that he invested several dozen million euros in Serbia in 2006, Subotic said that he allocated over one million euros for funding of the Democratic Party by means of his Democracy Development Fund. Still, proceedings against him were launched two weeks after he made the last financial transfer. Subotic said that former Serbian president Boris Tadic and his closest associates exerted pressure on him on several occasions. Subotic was at large for seven years and he was tried in absentia because he was unavailable to Serbian judiciary bodies until July 2013, when the Court decided to cancel the warrant and replace detention with bail. The trial in Subotic case was restaged and began on June 17, and after the amendment to the Code of Criminal Procedure on April 15, the indictment charged him with abuse of office as a responsible figure which entails a prison sentence of up to 10 years, which means that he is no longer facing the potential prison sentence of up to 12 years. The Belgrade Appellate Court annulled the first-degree ruling last winter whereby Subotic was sentenced to 6 years in prison for abuse of office. Subotic is charged with heading the criminal ring which smuggled cigarettes from Macedonia to Serbia in 1995 and 1996 and then sold them to companies and individuals. The ring gained EUR 28 million and USD 6 million at the expense of the republic budget. Although a warrant for his arrest in force during a number of years, Subotic lived and worked in Switzerland as a free citizen. Subotic (left) arrives at the court house on Monday (Tanjug) Tanjug

Controversial businessman accuses politicians

Subotić said that the campaign and accusations against him started in the media in 2000s, so that the government could seize his money and property.

“The then interior minister Dušan Mihajlović launched the investigation on cigarette smuggling in 2002, and at the same time he came to blackmail me and demand a lot of money to prevent the investigation against me,” Subotić told the court seven years after the proceedings against him were launched in 2006, Tanjug has reported.

He noted that other politicians also visited him before the proceedings in 2006, saying that they will solve the investigation matter with certain concessions such as money or other modes of compensation.

Noting that he invested several dozen million euros in Serbia in 2006, Subotić said that he allocated over one million euros for funding of the Democratic Party by means of his Democracy Development Fund.

Still, proceedings against him were launched two weeks after he made the last financial transfer.

Subotić said that former Serbian president Boris Tadić and his closest associates exerted pressure on him on several occasions.

Subotić was at large for seven years and he was tried in absentia because he was unavailable to Serbian judiciary bodies until July 2013, when the Court decided to cancel the warrant and replace detention with bail.

The trial in Subotić case was restaged and began on June 17, and after the amendment to the Code of Criminal Procedure on April 15, the indictment charged him with abuse of office as a responsible figure which entails a prison sentence of up to 10 years, which means that he is no longer facing the potential prison sentence of up to 12 years.

The Belgrade Appellate Court annulled the first-degree ruling last winter whereby Subotić was sentenced to 6 years in prison for abuse of office.

Subotić is charged with heading the criminal ring which smuggled cigarettes from Macedonia to Serbia in 1995 and 1996 and then sold them to companies and individuals.

The ring gained EUR 28 million and USD 6 million at the expense of the republic budget.

Although a warrant for his arrest in force during a number of years, Subotić lived and worked in Switzerland as a free citizen.