CUSTODY MOTION FOR THREE SUSPECTS FOR ORGANISED CRIME AND HUMAN SMUGGLING

The allegations against the suspects are that they, as members of an organised international chain of human smugglers, participated in the smuggling of hundreds of citizens of the Republic of Türkiye and other countries through Bosnia and Herzegovina to the EU.

A prosecutor of the Special Department for Organised Crime, Economic Crime and Corruption sent a motion to the Court of Bosnia and Herzegovina to order the following suspects into custody:

1.      Baban Mohammed Kareem, born in 1990 in Iraq, citizen of Iraq, apprehended by the Sarajevo Canton Ministry of Interior,

2.      Ilhan Onen, born in 1986 in Türkiye, citizen of Türkiye, apprehended by the Sarajevo Canton Ministry of Interior,

3.      Emir Njemčević, born in 1972 in Sarajevo, citizen of Bosnia and Herzegovina, apprehended by the Sarajevo Canton Ministry of Interior,.

They are suspects are under investigation by the Prosecutor’s Office of BiH, partner institutions and law enforcement agencies and are suspected of having, acting as part of an international organised criminal group, in the past few months, participated in the smuggling of a large number of citizens of the Republic of Türkiye, as well as other countries, whom they illegally transported to Bosnia and Herzegovina, found them accommodation and transportation from Sarajevo to cities in the Una-Sana Canton, from where they were smuggled further to the Republic of Croatia and EU countries, and for which they acquired unlawful property gain in larger amounts.

According to the collected evidence, the suspects acted in coordination with other persons located in the territory of Türkiye and Bosnia and Herzegovina. During the apprehension and searches, a large amount of money was seized, as well as travel documents and documents of more than 400 persons, citizens of Türkiye, who are suspected of having been smuggled into EU countries.

The custody measure was proposed for the reasons described in Article 132 (1) (a), (b) and (c) of the Criminal Procedure Code of BiH, in respect of foreign nationals due to the risk they could flee, as well as due to the risk that they could repeat the criminal offence or complete the one they had started while at large, and in respect of the citizen of Bosnia and Herzegovina, due to the risk that, by being at large, he could obstruct the investigation, conceal evidence, and exert influence on witnesses or accomplices.

The Prosecutor’s Office of BiH and partner institutions, the Sarajevo Canton Ministry of Interior and the Border Police of BiH, are continuing the investigation and collecting evidence in this case.