Who Are Dodik's Lobbyists from the US: They Claimed to Investigate USAID, While Preparing His Removal from the Blacklist

(Patria) - "Former US federal prosecutor Martin De Luca, who is part of Donald Trump's team, said that an investigation has been launched in Bosnia and Herzegovina regarding the spending of money through USAID, and that initial information indicates that 402 million dollars were spent in the past four years, of which 250 million cannot be accounted for."

This is how, at the end of February this year, RTRS reported to the public about the visit of American lawyers to Banja Luka, under the headline: "Investigation launched, unknown where 250 million dollars from USAID were spent in Bosnia and Herzegovina."

The news was then picked up by other media in Bosnia and Herzegovina, and the real reasons for the arrival of the American lawyers remained shrouded in secrecy. Namely, lawyer Martin De Luca did not come to Banja Luka to investigate the spending of USAID funds, writes Istraga.ba.

The reason for the visit were meetings to arrange the engagement of the law firm Boies Schiller Flexner (BSF) for "lobbying" work in favor of the President of Republika Srpska, Milorad Dodik.

In addition to February, American lawyers and legal experts also came to Banja Luka at the beginning of April. The delegation consisted of a total of seven American and British nationals, namely: Luke Langham, Brenna McConnell, Andrew Hersey, Andrew Smith, John Kucera, Anita Franklin, and Martin De Luca.

During their stay, they were accommodated at the "Courtyard by Marriott" hotel in the center of Banja Luka, with accommodation reservations and costs covered by the Cabinet of the President of Republika Srpska, Milorad Dodik. They checked into the hotel on April 4 and checked out on April 11.

After the arrival of this delegation, the hotel management was contacted by Siniša Milić from Zvornik, who additionally reserved a meeting room intended for the business activities of the mentioned group members.

Siniša Milić is the president of the Association for Mobility and Education "Aranea" from Zvornik. This is an association close to the ruling structure in Republika Srpska, whose founders are prominent members and officials of the SNSD.

When making the reservation, Milić requested that the bill for the use of the room, as well as all other costs incurred on that basis, be invoiced to the "Aranea" association.

BSF employees worked daily for several hours in the reserved meeting room and regularly went for consultations at the Palace of the President of Republika Srpska.

Official vehicles of the President's Cabinet would pick them up, and Milan Srdić (a cabinet employee) was in charge of logistical support and their needs during their stay in Banja Luka.

At the Palace of the President of Republika Srpska, the American and British lawyers from BSF met with advisors Marko Romić and Branislav Okuka.

This law firm was actually engaged to lobby the new US administration with the aim of lifting sanctions imposed on the political leadership of Republika Srpska, and redirecting the attention of the US administration to actors from the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina, whom they will present as beneficiaries of secret USAID funds used against Republika Srpska.

Two members of the aforementioned law firm - Andrew Smith and Martin De Luca - visited the Ministry of Internal Affairs of Republika Srpska, where they held a meeting with police director Siniša Kostrešević.

When crossing the border, cars owned by the "President of Republika Srpska," the "Republican Protocol of the Government of Republika Srpska," and the "Secretariat of the Government of Republika Srpska" were used.

Earlier in his career, Martin De Luca served as a prosecutor in the US Department of Justice as a Special Assistant US Attorney in the US Attorney's Office for the Southern District of New York and as an Assistant District Attorney in the New York District Attorney's Office.

He prosecuted cases involving corruption, complex fraud cases, money laundering, tax evasion, organized crime, terrorist financing, and international drug trafficking.

These cases often required cooperation with the FBI, the US Department of Homeland Security, US intelligence agencies, and foreign law enforcement partners, providing him with an understanding of how to manage crises spanning jurisdictions and involving multiple participants.

Incidentally, De Luca was the lawyer for Marc Fogel, who was released on February 11 this year. Fogel was arrested in 2022 and sentenced in Russia to 14 years in prison for alleged drug smuggling.

Martin De Luca is also a lawyer for Trump Media Group and the video platform Rumble, which appealed the blocking of the social network in Brazil ordered in January this year by a minister of the Supreme Federal Court in Brazil.