The dismantling of Serbia’s existing power structure, set in motion following the Student List’s electoral victory, could have serious consequences for former President Aleksandar Vučić as well.
Serbia’s Organised Crime Prosecutor’s Office has requested documentation concerning all the individuals whom Vučić pardoned shortly before leaving the presidential office.
The Student List has called on the prosecution to investigate media reports concerning the former president’s alleged links to one of the largest criminal groups in the region.
Meanwhile, Vučić has claimed that there is “nothing against him,” arguing that he does not sign “anything related to money.”
Serbian experts also acknowledge the potential difficulties in bringing criminal proceedings against the former president, reports Genadij Sisojev, the Balkan correspondent for the Russian newspaper Kommersant.
At the end of last week, the Special Prosecutor’s Office for Combating Organised Crime (JTOK) requested that courts in Serbia’s three largest cities – Belgrade, Novi Sad and Niš – urgently submit documentation concerning criminal proceedings against 49 individuals whom Aleksandar Vučić pardoned on September 27, one day before resigning from the presidency.
The prosecution intends to examine the nature of the criminal offences these individuals were accused of and, consequently, assess whether the former president’s decision to pardon them was justified.
At the end of October, JTOK had attempted to obtain the documentation from the Ministry of Justice, but its request was ignored. Prosecutors therefore decided to approach the courts directly.
Although Vučić pardoned the 49 individuals on September 27, their names were kept secret until November 2, when the courts made their identities public.
Among them was Dijana Hrkalović, a former State Secretary at the Ministry of Internal Affairs and a figure close to the ruling Serbian Progressive Party (SNS). She had been convicted on charges involving links to criminal groups and abuse of office.
Vučić also pardoned Marko Pavlović, an SNS supporter. The party had governed Serbia for 14 years. Pavlović had been accused of attempted murder.
