Montenegrin mafia
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Crnogorska mafija | |
| Founded | 1992 |
|---|---|
| Founding location | Bar |
| Territory | The Balkans; Montenegro, Serbia, Albania, Kosovo |
| Ethnicity | Montenegrins, Montenegrin Bosniaks, Montenegrin Serbs, Montenegrin Albanians |
| Criminal activities | Arms trafficking, assault, drug trafficking, extortion, fraud, murder, theft. |
| Notable members | Armin (Muša) Osmanagić |
The Montenegrin mafia (Crnogorska mafija) refers to the various criminal organizations based in Montenegro or composed of Montenegrins. Outside of the country Montenegrin gangs are active throughout Europe-notably Serbia. The gangs tend to specialize in cigarette smuggling, narcotics and arms trafficking.
Crime syndicates
The Montenegrin police have just recently begun documenting and taking action against the many criminal gangs within Montenegro, discovering a vast network of powerful cartels and groups that play a central role in organized crime within the Balkans.[1]
Kotor clans
Kotor is a coastal town in Montenegro, which has a long maritime trade history, and is home to Montenegro's sole naval faculty. Thus, owing to the fact that most of Montenegro's educated merchant seamen come from Kotor, the city has emerged as a recruitment ground for sailors tasked with smuggling cocaine on cargo ships, on a South America - Europe route.
Kotor clan came to prominence during 2000s, the under the leadership of Darko Šarić and Dragan Dudić "Fric". This criminal organization was suspected of operating one of the largest cocaine smuggling schemes, on a South America - Europe route. They reinvested the proceeds from their criminal enterprise into numerous business ventures in Montenegro and the region, including high profile nightclubs and hotels.
In 2010, Dragan Dudić was murdered in Kotor, while Šarić clan was largely neutralized in regional police action "Balkan Warrior". The remainder of Kotor clan has split into two factions:
- Kavač clan - named after the Kotor village of Kavač, currently led by Radoje Zvicer. This clan is suspected to be close with remainder of Šarić clan, and Veljko Belivuk criminal group from Serbia.
- Škaljari clan - named after the Kotor village of Škaljari, currently led by Jovica Vukotić. This clan is suspected to be close with Bar clan, as well as Zemun clan from Serbia.
These two organized crime groups are engaged in a bitter gang war since 2015, with as many as 50 dead on both sides, murdered in Montenegro and throughout Europe, usually in carefully planned targeted murders.
The takedown of Sky ECC encrypted communication network has shed light on many previously unsolved crimes committed by the two clans, as well as on their connections with various police and government officials. However, although Sky ECC takedown has weakened the clans, they remain the two most powerful criminal groups in Montenegro, and possibly in the Balkans.
The Bar cartel
The organization are primarily involved in smuggling, arms trafficking, protection rackets and illegal gambling. The group are organized in the horizontal manner and higher-ranked members are not necessarily coordinated by any leader although lately the Bar mafia started regulating its vertical hierarchy making the organization much stronger.[2] The organization has a local reputation to have connections with corrupt high-ranking men in Herceg Novi, Tivat, Kotor, Budva and Ulcinj Regional Police Units. [3]
Montenegrin mafia diaspora
Serbia
With a large Montenegrin community, Serbia is host to many Montenegrin criminals and gangs. Operating mainly in the capital of Belgrade and Montenegrin enclaves in southern Serbia, these groups largely deal with the smuggling of narcotics and weapons. Some of these groups are also considered a part of Serbian Mafia. The issue is part of the controversy over ethnic and linguistic identity in Montenegro.
See also
References
- ^ "Veliki pljačkaši i dileri Evrope". Retrieved 26 December 2014.
- ^ United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees. "Refworld - Montenegro: Extent of organized crime activities, including corruption in the police force or other government agencies; government response to these activities and state protection available to witnesses who testify against corrupt government employees (2005 - Aug. 2007)". Refworld. Retrieved 26 December 2014.
- ^ "KOTORSKI KOMANDIR PRIZNAO DA JE ČLAN NARKO-KLANA: Vođama dojavljivao kada da beže od policije".
Further reading
- "Bad Blood: A War Between Montenegrin Cocaine Clans Engulfs the Balkans". occrp.org. Organized Crime and Corruption Reporting Project. 5 May 2020. Retrieved 21 April 2021.