ON THE RUN SINCE JULY 8TH Independent Board of the BiH PA Today on Galić's Request for Dismissal as SIPA Deputy Director

(Patria) - The Independent Board of the BiH PA will hold a session today to consider the status of SIPA Deputy Director Zoran Galić, who has been on the run from BiH judicial authorities since July 8th. Galić crossed the border illegally and is currently in Croatia. He attempted to obtain sick leave and then annual leave through his lawyer, but was unsuccessful.

On July 29th, his legal team submitted a request for dismissal to the Council of Ministers of BiH, but no such decision was made at yesterday's session. The same request stated that he had met the conditions for retirement. It is interesting that Galić is requesting dismissal effective July 8, 2024, given that he has no legal justification for his absence from work.

The Council of Ministers of BiH forwarded the request to the Independent Board.

"The session also considered and forwarded to the Independent Board of the Parliamentary Assembly of BiH for urgent opinion the request of the Deputy Director of the State Investigation and Protection Agency (SIPA), Zoran Galić, for dismissal at his personal request, which he submitted to the Council of Ministers of BiH through his law firm.

The Independent Board, which proposed the appointment of Zoran Galić, was asked to provide its opinion on the legal procedure regarding the submitted request for dismissal at a personal request, and to submit this information to the Council of Ministers of BiH," it was announced after yesterday's session of the Council of Ministers of BiH.

The Independent Board is competent to initiate dismissal proceedings, and they have not yet received documentation from the BiH Prosecutor's Office based on which they could initiate the necessary procedures.

If Galić's request for retirement is accepted, it would mean he is also entitled to severance pay.

The BiH Prosecutor's Office is expected to soon request an international arrest warrant for Galić, and Croatia is expected to extradite him to BiH based on the 2013 agreement.

Galić is suspected of criminal offenses of receiving gifts and abuse of official position. While he was the Director of the BiH Border Police, he was in contact with a criminal group from whom he received a car as a gift, which he registered to his wife.

Galić apparently received information about the arrest operation and fled on July 8th. The operation was carried out on July 9th, and Galić was not at his address in Posušje.