Dritan Abazovic on Monday called for prosecutors to investigate the authenticity of published SKY ECC transcripts – which appear to reveal ties between top state and police officials and organised crime gangs.
Montenegro’s National Security Council session in Podgorica. Photo: Government of Montenegro
Montenegro’s outgoing Prime Minister, Dritan Abazovic, on Monday called on the Special State Prosecution to investigate the authenticity of published SKY ECC transcripts of alleged state and police authorities’ ties with organized crime.
Since June 30, the daily Vijesti has published the SKY ECC transcript of former senior police officer Petar Lazovic’s conversation with drug gang leader Radoje Zvicer and drugs baron Darko Saric, in which he talked about state and police officials’ involvement in tobacco smuggling, including former state President Milo Djukanovic and ex-head of the police directorate Veselin Veljovic.
After the National Security Council session on Monday, Abazovic said the prosecution is “doing something about all this”.
“The question of the authenticity of the SKY ECC communication that appeared in the media is a question for the prosecutor. Interesting people are mentioned in the SKY transcripts, and the prosecution should investigate them,” Abazovic said.
Citing a European police agency EUROPOL report to the Montenegrin government, Vijesti published SKY ECC transcripts in which Lazovic claimed that his father, Zoran, then a senior police officer, was protecting the notorious Kavac drug gang and Saric. He also accused then Police Directorate head Veselin Veljovic and the then police chief in the capital, Podgorica, Milovan Pavicevic, of protecting the rival Skaljari drug gang.
Veljovic and Pavicevic have not commented on the published transcripts, but Zoran Lazovic on April 24 accused Abazovic of running a negative campaign against his family.
In one of SKY ECC transcripts, published on July 1, Petar Lazovic said that Montenegro’s then President Milo Djukanovic and his advisor Milan Rocen were getting a profit from tobacco smuggling.
“Don’t mention that we’ve been working for 30 years and handing money to Milo personally. Don’t tell that we bring money to Milo; 300,000 (euros) to Milo Djukanovic personally every month, carried by my uncle,” a message stated.
On July 1, ruling parties and Montenegrin President Jakov Milatovic called on the prosecution to investigate the claims in published transcripts, saying that former state and police officers should be questioned.
On July 2, Djukanovic denied the claims, while also urging the authorities to investigate those accusations. “This is one in a series of constructions that try to make a final reckoning with me and the Democratic Party of Socialists, DPS. I am ready to help the prosecution expose this spin,like many others during my long political life,” Djukanovic posted on his Twitter account.
According to the EUROPOL report, which included transcripts of encrypted messages, two senior police officers in Montenegro, Petar Lazovic and Ljubo Milovic, were providing the Kavac gang with official protection for their drug, arms and tobacco smuggling.
On April 26, 2022, the Higher Court confirmed the indictment of Petar Lazovic, while in July last year, Montenegro issued an international warrant for Milovic and one of the Kavac drug gang’s alleged leaders, Radoje Zvicer.
In December last year, Special State Prosecutor Sasa Cadjenovic was charged with protecting Kavac drug gang members. The police’s assistant director, Dejan Knezevic, and 12 current and ex-police officials were arrested on March 23 for links with the Kavac drug gang.
According to Higher Court in Podgorica, since 2021 ten confirmed indictments were based on Sky ECC transcripts, while the first first-instance verdict is expected by the end of the year.
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