Dragan Tomic, former director of Kolubara coal mine, and 16 others associated with the company were arrested on Monday, Serbian Organized Crime Prosecutor Miljko Radisavljević told Tanjug news service.
“Another 14 former and current Kolubara officials of Kolubara and owners of private enterprises were arrested,” Radisavljevic said.
The prosecutor said that the detainees embezzled funds by hiring private contractors at inflated prices, and affirmed that his office will continue investigations into malfeasance.
The mine, 50 kilometers southwest of Serbia’s capital of Belgrade, produces 26 million tons of coal annually.
Tomic, who served as director of the mine between 2004 and 2008, was arrested along with his successor, Dragan Jovicic, who directed the mine in 2008-2009. Also taken in was Radoslav Savatijevic, who served on the Serbian Power Company (EPS) Board of Directors and owns a number of businesses. Tomic had been serving as an adviser to the EPS General Director.
Tomic attempted to flee Serbia before he could be arrested, but he was apprehended as he tried to cross the border into Macedonia, reports Blic.
Tomic was appointed director in 2004 by former Serbian Prime Minister Vojislav Kostunica’s Democratic Party of Serbia (DSS). The party issued a statement welcoming organized crime prosecutions, but warning that it would be “damaging” if the investigation turned out to be “revenge against the ruling coalition’s opponents in a previous election year.”
“The arrest of 17 persons suspected of fraud in the Kolubara complex is just the beginning of the action,” Serbian Justice Ministry State Secretary Slobodan Homen said after the arrests were announced.
Homen said Tuesday’s arrests were just the beginning of punitive action towards the mine scheme, insisting that investigations into the businesses through which the mine officials laundered money would also come under intense scrutiny.
