RS Ministry of Internal Affairs arrests SDS President and Mayor of Teslić Milan Miličević for accepting bribes

(Patria) - Police officers of the Criminal Police Administration of the Ministry of Internal Affairs of Republika Srpska, under the supervision of the Special Department for the Suppression of Corruption, Organized and the most serious forms of Economic Crime of the Republican Public Prosecutor's Office, and by order of the Special Department for the Suppression of Corruption, Organized and the most serious forms of Economic Crime of the District Court in Banja Luka, are conducting an operational action codenamed "BLOK" within which persons M.M., M.D., and M.J., all from Teslić, have been deprived of their liberty due to the existence of grounds for suspicion that they have committed the criminal offenses of "Trading in Influence" from Article 321, Paragraph 4, and "Accepting Bribes" from Article 319, Paragraph 1 of the Criminal Code of Republika Srpska.

During the investigation, over the past six months, police officers, by order of the competent Court, seized approximately 90,000 KM originating from the corrupt activities of the mentioned individuals, and it has been deposited in the court's escrow.

Searches are underway at the locations used by the deprived individuals, within which an additional 250,000 KM originating from the mentioned corrupt activities is being sought, based on which they illegally changed the assembly majority of the Teslić Municipality Assembly through trading in influence.

The Criminal Police Administration has submitted a Report on Committed Criminal Offenses to the Republican Public Prosecutor's Office against persons M.M., M.D., and M.J..

The deprived individuals will be handed over to the competent prosecutor of the Republican Prosecutor's Office within the legal deadline after criminal processing, it was announced from the RS Ministry of Internal Affairs.

The City Board of SDS also commented on this action, given that one of the arrested individuals is the SDS President and Mayor of Teslić, Milan Miličević.

"Members of the Ministry of Internal Affairs of RS and the Criminal Police Administration have been conducting searches since this morning in the Teslić City Administration, the family home of the Mayor of Teslić, Milan Miličević, as well as the homes of two other SDS councilors," announced the City Board of the Serbian Democratic Party Teslić.

They emphasized that this is an "obvious attempt at political intimidation, creating chaos, and violence against the freely expressed will of the citizens".

"The City Board of the Serbian Democratic Party in Teslić most strongly condemns the brutal, politically motivated abuse of the Ministry of Internal Affairs of Republika Srpska and the Criminal Police Administration, which openly serves as a weapon of the SNSD regime for dealing with dissidents and overthrowing the democratically elected government in Teslić. These searches and procedures are carried out based on obviously false and fabricated reports, which come from political opponents – individuals who are known to everyone to have been involved in dubious business for years and to have acquired their enormous wealth illegally. Instead of investigating their wrongdoings, the police are violating all democratic norms and laws by raiding the homes of honorable people," stated the GO SDS Teslić.

They point out that "this is not a fight against crime, but naked repression against dissidents".

"This is not the application of the law – this is political violence. This is not an investigation – this is an attempted coup d'état in a local community where the people do not support the regime.

SDS Teslić warns the public that this is not an incident, but part of an organized plan by regime structures to use force, pressure, lies, and abuse of institutions to try to regain the lost assembly majority in Teslić and thereby protect their own criminal interests. We call on all honorable police officers not to comply with illegal orders and to adhere to the law, not party directives. We call on the public, the media, the institutions of Republika Srpska, and the international community to stand up in defense of justice, democracy, and the dignity of every free-thinking citizen. The regime can raid, but it cannot intimidate. You will not extinguish freedom," stated SDS Teslić.