Indictment against Srđan Rankić for smuggling

(Patria) - A prosecutor from the BiH Prosecutor's Office has filed an indictment against Srđan Rankić, born in 1982 in Bijeljina, previously convicted, a citizen of BiH.

The accused is charged with smuggling textile goods of significant value, clothing items from various world-renowned brands, declared with manufacturer labels from several countries, from the Republic of Serbia into the territory of Bosnia and Herzegovina on September 21, 2018, in the border area in the village of Popovi in the municipality of Bijeljina.

According to the indictment, the accused smuggled the aforementioned goods in agreement with a person from the Republic of Serbia, by means of the said person transporting the goods by boat across the Drina river from the territory of the Republic of Serbia, where the accused loaded and took over the goods, after which he proceeded further towards the interior of BiH by vehicle.

The accused was then attempted to be stopped by police officers of the Border Police Station Bijeljina on a local road while controlling movement. In order to avoid a police chase, the accused increased the speed of the vehicle, lost control, hit a tree with the side of the vehicle, and then stopped in a yard.

The said goods were seized from him after a search of the vehicle's interior. The total value of the goods was determined to be 15,709.96 KM.

The accused Rankić is charged with transporting goods of significant value across the customs line, evading customs control measures, thereby committing the criminal offense of smuggling under Article 214, Paragraph 1 of the Criminal Code of BiH.

The indictment has been forwarded to the BiH Court for confirmation.