Montenegrin Opposition Official Arrested for Involvement in Crime Group

Predrag Boskovic. Photo: Montenegrin Government Montenegrin police on Monday arrested Predrag Boskovic, an opposition Democratic Party of Socialists, DPS official and former government minister, for allegedly belonging to a criminal organisation that targeted political opponents via the media. Boskovic was arrested as part of a Special State Prosecutor’s Office investigation into Montenegrin businessman Aleksandar Mijajlovic, former police and National Security Agency, ANB officials Milovan Pavicevic and Drago Spicanovic, and state prosecutor Andrijana Nastic, all of whom were arrested on October 3 for forming a criminal organisation. Daily newspaper Vijesti reported on Monday that the prosecution accused Mijajlovic of creating a criminal organisation that allegedly used police and ANB confidential data and published it in the media and via bots on social media networks to target political opponents and influence the security situation in the country. The Special State Prosecutor’s Office did not comment on the reasons for the arrest nor has it published details of the indictment. On Monday, DPS MP Andrija Nikolic accused the prosecution of political persecution of the opposition and abuse of authority. “The authorities are persecuting political dissidents. You will find critics in the ranks of the NGO sector, politicians, and meme creators,” Nikolic said at a press conference. “We call on the prosecution not to abuse its authority and not to side with the government. They are mistaken if they think we will allow them to harass everyone,” he added. Predrag Boskovic is a former DPS MP and served as both Minister of Defence and Minister of Social Care in the DPS-led government. After almost three decades ruling the country, the DPS lost power in parliamentary elections in August 2020. In July 2023, the Special State Prosecution filed an indictment charging Boskovic and 11 other former officials in former Prime Minister Dusko Markovic’s government with violations related to loans granted to state officials to buy property. The indictment claimed that from 2016 to 2020, the commission approved 119 loans that exceeded the legal limit of 15,000 euros. The High Court dropped those charges in May, claiming the prosecution failed to provide credible evidence.