Six arrested for abuse of office in surplus arms sales

BELGRADE - Six persons have been arrested for abuse of office connected to the sales of surplus arms and military equipment, in a joint operation of the Serbian Interior Ministry (MUP) Criminal Police Department and the Defense Ministry's Military Security Agency (VBA).

One Defense Ministry officer and five civilians from Belgrade, Temerin and Gornji Milanovac have been arrested, MUP stated in a release.

They are suspected of committing criminal offences of abuse of office and incitement to abuse of office, and acquiring material gain in excess of RSD 12 million.

The arrestees include D.M (47), army member and sales administrator at the Procurement Department of the Ministry of Defense, and D.R. (54) retired military member employed with the company “CPR-Impex” LLC Belgrade, while the remaining arrestees are responsible persons in this and two other companies.

D.M. is under suspicion that, in league with the other arrested persons, as chairman of the committee for the sale of surplus arms and military equipment of Serbian Armed Forces in the period of 2011 to 2013, he favored certain participants in the bidding procedure, the Belgrade-based CPR-Impex, Tehnoremont Temerin and Auto-import Gornji Milanovac, states the release.

Suspect D. M. made sure that these bidders were scheduled as last in the direct negotiations held within the tender and secretly informed them about the offers made by other bidders.

In this way they were able to enter into contracts under privileged conditions and acquire material gain totaling RSD 12,376,205.44.

The suspects will be placed in 48-hour custody after which they will be taken to the High Public Prosecutor's Office in Belgrade and criminal charges will...