SIPA

On 22 October 2014, police officials of the State Investigation and Protection Agency (SIPA) initiated an operation code-named “Gibraltar” in Sarajevo, Banja Luka, Mostar, Posušje and Grude.

Eight individuals have been arrested, N.K. (DOB 1967), B.K. (DOB 1972), L.T. (DOB 1978), Z.B. (DOB 1964), S.P. (DOB 1958), D.A. (DOB 1965), S.K. (DOB 1970) and S.Z. (DOB 1964), due to grounds for suspicion of having committed the criminal offence of organised crime in conjunction with the criminal offences of financial crime and corruption

During the investigative activities, it has been determined that members of the organised criminal group, based on false or damaging contracts and invoices, extracted money through off shore companies abroad and made illegal financial gain of more than 5 million Euro for an alleged purchase of TV rights and services, most of which were not actually transacted. A part of the money was kept on the off shore company accounts and another part had been transferred to personal accounts of suspected individuals abroad and used for purchase of expensive property.

Searches of residential premises, business offices and movables are ongoing at 16 locations with the aim to find and seize items that might be used as evidence in further proceedings.

The arrested individuals will be brought to the official premises of SIPA and criminally processed, whereupon they will be handed over to the Prosecutor’s Office BH for further proceedings.

These activities are being carried out upon orders by the Court BH and Prosecutor’s Office BH, in cooperation with members of the Sarajevo Canton Ministry of Interior, Herzegovina-Neretva Canton Ministry of Interior, West Herzegovina Canton Ministry of Interior and Republic of Srpska Ministry of Interior.

The activities within this case are being continued intensively and the public will be duly informed about the outcomes.