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The Government of the Republic of Serbia

In the service of citizens

Necessary to adopt laws on confiscating property obtained through organised crime

Belgrade, 15 March 2007

Serbian Minister of Justice Zoran Stojkovic said today that it is necessary to adopt laws in Serbia which will allow the confiscation of property obtained through organised crime in an adequate manner.

Author: Fonet

Speaking at the international conference on confiscation of property obtained through criminal acts being held at the Sava Centre, Stojkovic pointed to the fact that the new Criminal Procedure Code, which will come into force on June 1, allows widened possibility of blockade and temporary confiscation of property which is suspected of having been obtained through criminal acts.

He said that the possibility exists that Serbia will conduct, like other European countries, verification of property which is suspected to have been obtained through criminal acts going back several years, and cited the example of Ireland and England who conducted such verifications dating back 12 and 15 years respectively.

According to Stojkovic, the property of a person who obtained capital legally will not be confiscated, while the property of anyone who is proven guilty of having obtained capital through criminal acts will be confiscated.

Stojkovic recalled that owing to the OSCE a Bill was prepared on setting up an agency for managing confiscated property acquired illegally, and the Bill is currently undergoing parliamentary procedure.

Special Prosecutor for Organised Crime Slobodan Radovanovic stressed that adoption of the law on confiscation of property acquired through criminal acts is of crucial importance for giving the final blow to corruption and crime in Serbia.

US Ambassador to Serbia Michael Polt said that Serbia has the instruments for fight against crime and should use them as aggressively as possible in the fight against corruption and criminal organisations.

Head of OSCE Mission to Serbia Hans Ola Urstad pointed to the fact that confiscation of property of criminal organisations is the key factor in the fight against organised crime, adding that every financial loss experienced by criminals reduces their ability to finance major crimes.

Urstad stressed that the OSCE will continue to provide support to the Special Prosecutor’s Office for Organised Crime in Belgrade.

The conference in the Sava Centre is being attended by a large number of US and Italian experts who will share their experience in fight against organised crime.

The international conference on confiscation of property obtained through criminal acts has been organised by the Special Prosecutor’s Office for Organised Crime in cooperation with the US Embassy Belgrade Resident Legal Advisor’s Office and the OSCE Mission in Serbia.