INDICTMENT ISSUED AGAINST TEN PERSONS FOR ORGANIZED SMUGGLING OF ILLEGAL MIGRANTS

It is an international regional operation in which prosecutor’s offices and law enforcement agencies from Bosnia and Herzegovina, Serbia and Croatia, in a joint cooperation, have discovered organized groups for smuggling of migrants. These accused persons are charged with smuggling of at least 141 illegal migrants.

Prosecutor from the Special Department for Organized Crime, Economic Crime and Corruption has issued an Indictment against the following persons:

1. Nenad Mirković, aka “Neno”, born in 1981 in Bijeljina
2. Nikola Simić, born in 1994 in Bijeljina
3. Dražen Vićanović, born in 1995 in Bijeljina
4. Milan Petrović, aka “Mikara”, born in 1995 in Bijeljina
5. Ognjen Vidaković, aka “Ogi”, born in 1995 in Loznica, residing in Zvornik
6. Marjan Vilotić, born in 1991 in Bijeljina
7. Nikola Kokanović, born in 1999 in Bijeljina
8. Mirko Bjelović, born in 1997 in Brčko
9. Đorđe Puzigaća, born in 1992 in Mrkonjić Grad, residing in Brčko
10. Anđelo Tešić, born in 1996 in Brčko.

The aforementioned accused persons are charged with joining a group of people in the first half of 2019, which was organized by the accused Nenad Mirković for the purpose of committing the criminal offense of Smuggling of Persons, and with acting jointly with several persons from the territory of Bosnia and Herzegovina, Serbia and Croatia in order to acquire unlawful material gain and commit organized smuggling of illegal migrants, mainly nationals of Iran, Bangladesh, Pakistan, Morocco, Afghanistan, Syria, India and other countries, through the territory of Bosnia and Herzegovina, with an aim of their illegal transportation to the EU countries. Thereby, they acted in contravention of Article 6 of the Protocol against the Smuggling of Migrants by Land, Sea and Air, Supplementing the United Nations Convention against Transnational Organized Crime.

The Indictment alleges that the aforementioned accused persons smuggled migrants from the territory of Serbia to Bosnia and Herzegovina, after which they provided accommodation for them and their further illegal transport across the territory of Bosnia and Herzegovina, with the aim of their further illegal transfer to Croatia and ultimately to the EU countries.

The conducted investigation has shown that these accused persons participated in the smuggling of at least 141 illegal migrants, thereby acquiring significant unlawful material gain and causing damage to the reputation of Bosnia and Herzegovina’s with respect to combating illegal smuggling of migrants.

These accused persons are charged with having committed the criminal offense of Organizing a Group or an Association for the Purpose of Perpetration of the Criminal Offense of Smuggling of Migrants, referred to in Article 189a of the Criminal Code of Bosnia and Herzegovina, in conjunction with the continued criminal offense of Smuggling of Persons, referred to in Article 189 of the Criminal Code of Bosnia and Herzegovina.

The Prosecutor’s Office will be proving the allegations of the Indictment by summonsing approximately a hundred of witnesses and expert witnesses and by submitting more than a hundred and fifty pieces of evidence.