BiH Border Police have 'technical problems' with document management system: Will Dodik leave BiH with an arrest warrant?

(Patria) - Since Friday (March 14), the BiH Border Police have been facing numerous technical problems that directly affect passenger border control, Istraga learns.

First, the DMS document management system at the Border Police failed several times in the last three days. Due to problems with the operation of this system, it has become difficult to upload new documents into the central system of the BiH Border Police. At the same time, the internet also failed at border crossings, which prevented border police officers from accessing databases to determine if any of the controlled passengers were subject to an arrest warrant or search.

The failure of the DMS system and the internet outage coincide with the request to issue a central arrest warrant for Milorad Dodik, Nenad Stevandić, and Radovan Višković.

Dodik has already announced a trip to Russia starting March 18, while Stevandić has been in Serbia since yesterday.

The Court of BiH has ordered pre-trial detention for all three, which is a prerequisite for issuing a central arrest warrant. However, if the technical problems continue, the BiH Border Police could very easily allow individuals with arrest warrants to leave BiH.

Earlier, an order to bring them for questioning at the BiH Prosecutor's Office was not executed because the BiH Court Police, which reports to the BiH Minister of Justice, and the State Investigation and Protection Agency (SIPA) conducted a security assessment and did not act on the order.

Several individuals confirmed to Patria that there were problems today during controls at Sarajevo International Airport as well, because the system failed.

What is the DMS system?

The BiH Border Police has established a Document Management System (DMS) that allows officials and/or organizational units to exchange documents electronically. Uninterrupted and proper functioning of the system depends on newer generation computer equipment. A special aspect that needs attention is the security of the system, both from external attacks and infiltration of unwanted content, as well as from within. In accordance with legal provisions on the protection of classified information and bylaws adopted based on the Law, the BiH Border Police is required to establish a system for exchanging classified data in electronic form up to the "SECRET" level of classification, according to the BiH Border Police's Medium-Term Work Plan for the period 2024-2026.

The head of the BiH Border Police is Mirko Kuprešaković, close to HDZ BiH, while Veljko Lazić, Assistant Director for Organization and Operations, was present on March 2 at a meeting of the MUP RS police structures with Milorad Dodik and Željka Cvijanović, after the adoption of unconstitutional laws prohibiting the work of the Court, Prosecutor's Office, HJPC, and SIPA in the territory of RS.

We remind you that the MUP RS also had certain "technical problems" with the functioning of telephone lines and fax machines starting March 10. Cantonal MUPs were informed about this, and message traffic was suspended.

The acting director of the Federal Police Administration, Vahidin Munjić, sent a dispatch on Friday, March 14, to all police commissioners in the Federation, stating that since March 10, there have been “problems in information exchange with the MUP of RS”.

“After we were informed in writing or orally by the MUP of Zenica-Doboj Canton, MUP of Sarajevo Canton, MUP of Bosna-Podrinje Canton that since March 10, 2025, there have been problems in information exchange via fax and telephone lines (they are interrupted) with the MUP of Republika Srpska, on March 13, 2025, we requested official information from the MUP of Republika Srpska regarding the mentioned problem. We were informed by the MUP of Republika Srpska that work is being done to resolve the problems in the functioning of fax telephone lines and that the problem is expected to be resolved on March 14, 2025, in the afternoon,” it is stated in the dispatch sent to all commissioners in the Federation by Vahidin Munjić, acting director of the FUP, which operates within the scope of the federal Minister of Internal Affairs, Ramo Isak.

Isak denied that there were problems, as did the Director of RS Police, Siniša Kostrešević, in an almost coordinated action. However, if Isak and Kostrešević are lying, the police commissioners who informed the FUP about the problems are not lying.