"Šarić case to open and close many questions"

"Šarić case to open and close many questions"

BELGRADE -- Someone from the state allowed Darko Šarić to launder money, privatize companies and gain valuable real estate, and the question is who, said Nikola Selaković.

Suspected drug lord Darko Šarić, who spent four years as a fugitive, was arrested in a joint operation of state bodies of Serbia and Montenegro on Tuesday.

Selaković, who is justice minister in the technical government and high ranking SNS party official, explained that since Šarić was located an operation to arrest him was extensively prepared, and that he was "not in one location at the time he was located." Instead, said the minister, the suspect was "moving between four countries in Latin America."

The arrest, Selaković told a special B92 TV program late on Tuesday, was considered "when regularity was noticed in the movements of the accused."

But Šarić then, via his lawyer, offered to surrender, Selaković explained, and added that his defense counsel addressed a letter to the Ministry of Justice, while an official note was made about it.

Šarić set two conditions for his surrender - but as thy were not related to the process that was being conducted against him, "we can say that this was unconditional surrender," said the minister, and added:

"When someone makes conditions those are mainyl related to procedural benefits. In this case we do not have any requirement of Darko Šarić to receive any benefits. The only two conditions were to come to Serbia through Montenegro, and to enable him to meet with his family and his lawyer in the international zone of the airport in Podgorica."

Selaković said that he "might have been surprised by...