CEE Crime, Spy and Somewhat Appalling Politics Roundup (July 19, 2024)

Greetings and salutations on this good Friday morning. July has been hyper-active in the spy, grime and crime sector, with corruption, white-collar crime and drug busts leading the charge.

As usual, Yours Truly will shine a quick light on the more thought-provoking--and troubling--developments in CEE. I have chosen, however, to hold off on Ukrainian war notes today, as those will be included early next week in the Ukrainians War Update.

Otherwise, read, ponder, be well and remember that pre-emptive due diligence is far cheaper than litigation support.

But enough preaching. Let's dive smack into the gloom.

Albania

Prosecutors in Tirana have followed up on a long-running case against former high-ranking “directors,” who allegedly worked at the behest of the mayor of Tirana, Erion Veliaj. And when we say “followed up on,” we mean “seized property.”

But first a bit about Veliaj, who has long had his share of controversies. These include the death of a 17-year-old back in 2016, who was working in poor conditions at a landfill in Sharre—after the company that managed the landfill, 3R, had been promoted by Veliaj and… said to have good working condition. It also includes comments about a female police officer who lost her fingers, with those implying that a woman without fingers is not marriage material. Then there was a year of protests over a controversial law and land ownership transfer… the National Theater in Tirana was demolished.

But that’s hardly all. There was a misappropriation of funds scandal linked to garbage incineration—and allegations of fraud—against Tirana municipality employees allegedly under the… guidance of Veliaj, and of late there has been the 5D scandal, which consists of high ranking Tirana directors having created a company, 5D Konstruksion, in order to win public tenders… which they won. This has also resulted in a subsequent investigation into Veliaj’s wealth (and allegedly that of his parents) by the Special Prosecutors Office Against Corruption (SPAK).

Yet despite a fairly major scandal just about every two years, Veliaj has never been charged, much less convicted of anything. His “alleged directors” have not been lucky with Redi M. and Margilen Q. currently under arrest on charges of both corruption and money laundering. Both are accused of misappropriating millions of euros… and both have now pled guilty. Now local properties, including a hotel are being seized by SPAK.

You never know in the Balkans, but it seems that… somethings gotta give.

Controversial Greek mayor-in-limbo and now MEP Fredi Beleri, who has been sentenced to two years in prison for vote buying back in May 2023 prior to his winning of the seat in Himara just keeps (somewhat bizarrely) winning. He was elected MEP in the spring, and he was also granted a reprieve from prison to head to Strasbourg for the EU Parliament session scheduled for July 16-19.

The Beleri soap opera has seriously impacted Greek-Albania relations, and Greece has more than hinted this has also damaged Albania’s hopes for joining the EU.

Interestingly, Beleri has never been seen as a saint. Once a plumber and later the owner of a bar, he was arrested in 1994 when a group of armed individuals—allegedly the Northern Epirus Liberation Front, attacked an Albanian Army recruiting center in Peshkepi, Dropull. One of the group shot and killed an Albanian guard. Then the group broke into the station, killed a captain and wounded a number of soldiers before locking 130 into the barracks and stealing Kalashnikovs rifles and Tokarev pistols.

Greek police later arrested seven suspects—among whom was Beleri—and they also confiscated Kalashnikovs, pistols and bayonets. Beleri was eventually charged with illegally owning guns, yet wider investigations were dropped in 2021. At this point… Beleri became a politician.

Yet he remained controversial and was handed down a three-year prison sentence in 2006 for “insulting the symbols of Albania” and inciting ethnic hatred. At this point, he became a fugitive—at least until the statute of limitations kicked in, t which point he again focused on his political career.

Trouble is as trouble does, but he is consistent. And he blames Albanian Prime Minister Edi Rama for his woes. (Actually, there are plenty of Albanians who do that). He also has to be back under guard, reportedly, on July 20.

Belarus

Only a couple of weeks ago Belarus put troops on the Ukrainian border. Then he pulled them back. Then Belarussian President Aleksandr Lukashenko made much of being the 10th member to officially join the Shanghai Cooperation Organization—and now Chinese and Belarussian forces are conducting military drills on the Polish border.

But the reality is that Lukashenko has been in power 30 years, and his tightrope game (which at one point was balancing his country between the EU and the US on one side and Russia—and a host of less desirable states—on the other, but which has increasingly been balancing his own hold on power against Russia’s will to simply absorb Belarus into Russia) is coming to an end.

Yes, that was a long sentence, but elections are on the horizon, Russia is grumpy and looming, Ukraine is not afraid (and it is more than irritated by Belarussian complicity in the war) and… Lukashenko is not the young buck he used to be.

In short, no matter how many dissenters are thrown in prison, no matter how many journalists are convicted in absentia, time remains undefeated—and change of some kind is in the wind. Whether he likes it or not.

The big bully.

Bosnia and Herzegovina (BiH)

While Serbia’s Russian leanings are featured on a daily basis, Bosnia is not immune. Or is it. Yours Truly may delve into this in the near future, but here is an impressive article featured by… Euronews on this very subject. Worth a read.

https://www.euronews.com/2024/07/15/will-bosnia-join-eu-and-nato-or-veer-closer-to-moscow-instead

That said, Bosnia has other worries. The Tri-partite governmental system, past atrocities and… Milorad Dodik are one thing (well, ok, three things—or in fact and legion of things), but the rule of law is another, as evidenced by the flight July 9 of none other than the vice director of the Bosnian State Investigation Agency, Zoran G. ,who apparently had Croatian leanings… at least in the sense that when the going got hot, he chose to flee to Croatia.

But politics aside (and really, there is no evidence of political games here), Zoran G. has been accused of taking long running bribes to allow tobacco smuggling in Bosnia while he was head of the border guard over a nine-year period beginning in 2014. Zoran G.’s near apprehension was part of a wider series of raids that took place in tandem with Europol and… yes, appears to have come as a result of the great Sky ECC encryption bust and shutdown that has netted organize crime figures of all types across Europe over the past 18 months.

So how did Zoran G. get away? It appears he may have been tipped off. That said, Bosnian anti-corruption police have arrested literally scores of cops over the past two years… so maybe he just felt the heat an ran.

On another note, there are Sky ECC influenced cases now ongoing from Northern Europe to the Balkans, and a push back from well-financed lawyers is bound to come. Will the treasure trove of SMS communications hold up (in other words, do police in various nations have the right to examine hundreds of thousands of texts and photos in possibly pre-emptive fashion—i.e. without a warrant?)?

We’ll see.

Bulgaria

Bulgaria, forever in a state of coming snap (crackle and pop) elections is now seen as potentially so unstable that it could lose out on EU recovery funds, which total well more than EUR 5 bln. And if you are wondering just how many elections Bulgaria has had in recent year, the running total is currently six in three years with a seventh on the way.

The head of a local, pro-Russian party in Plovdiv, Zlatomir D. was arrested for espionage in early July. Zlatomir D. is the head of the National Russian Movement chapter there. Meanwhile, Nikolai M., the national leader of… the National Russian Movement, was arrested for spying more than three years ago, is currently also facing US sanctions, and his court case is ongoing.

Czech(ia)

In a somewhat surprising turn of events the Czech Ministry of Foreign Affairs appears to be all in on Serbian EU accession. This comes following meetings between Serbian Minister of Foreign Affairs Marko Djuric and Czech Minister of Foreign Affairs Jan Lipavsky. Those who have followed the blog have likely picked up on the constant conflict—sometimes even bloody—between Kosovo and Serbia and the difficulties faced as a result by both states when it comes to EU accession. On the other hand, Yours Truly has also highlighted that no, the Serbs are not the sole barriers to dialogue here.

Interesting.

Estonia

In a recent post I mentioned the arrest of an Estonian professor who wound up arrested for spying. Check out this feature by the Kyiv Independent. Interesting reading to be sure.

https://kyivindependent.com/the-curious-case-of-viacheslav-morozov-russian-professor-made-a-career-in-estonia-by-criticizing-his-countrys-colonial-mindset-then-he-was-arrested-for-spying/

Hungary

Hungarian renegade (in the eyes of the EU) Prime Minister Viktor Orban may be the first prime minster of any nation to literally get raked over the coals for an attempt to end a war through prelim meetings to supposed peace negotiations. But raked he has become in that he just happened to “reach out” days (if not minutes) after he assumed the EU rotating presidency. First, despite the title (and the quiet hopes that the role would better help Orban understand the wills, wants and needs of EU states), Orban does not have the power or right to even appear to negotiate with Russia on behalf of the EU. Second, he is once again going against the grain here (although this is no surprise), but this time EU officials are… upset. To the point that when Hungary attempted to set up an informal meeting—which in truth could have been somewhat informative, following Orban’s… latest dalliance—EU officials and the president of the European Commission were having none of it. In fact, the EU actually announced… a boycott (!!!)

Of the current EU (rotating) president!

Sorry about overusing the exclamation point, but…

!!!

Still, exclamation points are not so difficult to understand, as Orban has met directly with the heads of state of both Russian China (albeit following a first meeting with Ukrainian President Volodymr Zelensky)—and that he has also already met with Republican former President and again candidate Donald Trump (who has not exactly back Ukraine in the current fight).

But if we play the devil’s advocate, the odds are looming that Hungary’s stated approach—that it’s time to negotiate to end the war—may sadly prove to be right. Russia is making gains (even in kilometers) on a daily basis, Ukraine is lacking personnel and the weapons are never quite there to the levels that they should be. And the citizenry is paying a heavy price. The war appears to be a larger and far more tragic version of the pre-World War II Finnish-Russian Winter War. The casualties and destruction wreaked in Ukraine are beyond the Winter War in terms of multiples, but as things are moving now once again there is the very high risk that history will again look back on a conflict where the wrong side won.

In fact, here is what Wikipedia says about the Winter War: “The 105-day war had a profound and depressing effect in Finland. Meaningful international support was minimal and arrived late, and the German blockade had prevented most armament shipments.”

Sounds familiar.

Kosovo

Kosovo Prime Minister Albin Kurti is still not up for concrete talks with Serbian President Aleksander Vucic and has demanded that Serbia shut down military outposts on the border—and seeing to imply that these are in fact Russian extensions of military might.

He also mentioned the threat of hybrid war.

It should be said, however, that Kurti does have a few points. Last summer saw a bizarre, possibly Serbian government backed vigilante raid inside Kosovo (near Zvecan at the Banjska monastery that involved 30 armed Kosovo Serbs and resulted in an all-night gunfight that left one Kosovo policeman dead and two others wounded.

On the other hand, Kosovo Serbs—since the war in Kosovo—have not had it easy, and the government of Kosovo has staunchly refused to 1) re-run failed mayoral elections that resulted in Kosovo-Albanian mayors in Serb dominated districts 2) create—as agreed back in 2013—a Community of Serb Municipalities—band basically refusing to seriously participate in “normalization” negotiations overseen by representatives of the EU.

Actually, there is a lot of spin from all sides here, and it is quite difficult to say anything positive is getting done, as said negotiations are effective stalled.

A foot note to the above is the more than curious case of Marko R., a convicted Kosovo Serb now on the lamb after being sentenced to 10 years in prison for the murder of fellow Serb Oliver Ivanovic.

That murder, which took place in 2018 in the hot spot of North Mitrovica was in fact a real blow to local dialogue. In short, Ivanovic was no saint, but, following the war in Kosovo, he did become a voice of reason—if not sanity—who called out not only Serb hardliners, but how also was not afraid to point out political-business “groups” fomenting continued conflict among ethic Serbians and Albanians on the local level.

That’s the vague summary. But the truth is that Ivanovic served three years for war crimes, exited prison and then was not afraid to point out the truth of the various matters that were making life hard for the common man on the ground. Here’s a quote, according to Vreme.com, that brings that home when he said that Kovoso Serbs were not afraid of ethnic Albanias, but of"Serbs, local criminals who ride in SUVs without car plates.” He added at that the time that "drugs are sold on every corner and parents are very concerned” and implied that local security forces were behind threats, the burning of vehicles and attacks that included the odd grenade.

On Jan. 16, 2018 Ivanovic was killed in a drive by in front of his office. The vehicles used was found not far away, burned out and with no plates.

Latvia

Former Latvian MEP (and journalist) Andrejs M. became a fugitive last month… and allegedly he has fled to Russia.

(!!!)

Sorry. Couldn’t help it. That said, maybe politicians are politicians, but this guy truly has been a blight on the word “journalist,” as he has literally stated that Russia was in the right with regard to atrocities committed in Ukraine—and he has been regularly featured saying so on Russian TV. And in Latvia, rationalizing genocide can get you five years in prison.

Latvia has closed the border with Belarus to vehicles with Belarussian plates based on EU sanctions. The logic is there, but Yours Truly does know more than one Belarussian just trying to get by… Conflicts seem to weight on the little people from every side.

With various fires having been popping up all over Western Europe, it pays to pay attention. According to a combined report by The Insider, Re: Baltica and Delfi, Russian GRU has been “recruiting Baltic citizens” to do just this. And the report is all based on court documents. Here’s the link, as it’s worth a read: https://theins.ru/en/politics/272989

Lithuania

It’s hard to be a crypto company of late—which was fairly predictable, as 1) most governments want citizens to deal in easy-to-see currencies that just happen to be their own (in order to tax them) and 2) crypto companies are always going to be under the eye of government tax offices, as… well, they are crypto. In Lithuania it’s no different, as the crypto payment service company Payeer was allegedly caught allowing transfers to sanctioned banks—and was subsequently hit with a USD 10 mln fine.

Montenegro

Former President of Montenegro Milo Dukanovic claimed on July 14 that he had avoided assassination, as there was a recent “plot” to kill him. Dukanovic is not only the former president (2018-2023) but a five-time prime minister and a career walking powerhouse in the country. Yet… he has a few controversies in his past, including accusations in 2003 that he was linked to organized crime and cigarette smuggling worth “billions of euros”—which the Duke vehemently denied. (And noteworthy is that a Naples judge rejected a request by the Italian Anti-mafia Commission in 2003 and the case was eventually dropped.

In October 2021 he turned up in the Pandora Papers and later admitted he founded the Victoria Trust and Capecastel Trust, although he said they only “existed on papers.”

He has also been accused of attacking journalists and in 2015 the Organized Crime and Corruption Reporting Project (OCCRP) named him… “Person of the Year in Organized Crime,” which lead to demonstrations in the street.  Etc., etc.

So he may be right in assuming there are a few enemies out there. No idea who at the moment though.

Poland

On July 17 Polish headlines erupted with news that a Polish company was busted for selling parts to Iran that were used to produce Shahed drones. This drew immediate outrage from Polish Minister of the Interior Tomasz Siemoniak, and there does appear to be much to be outraged about, as, according the Polish news radio service Radio Zet, a state company based out of Poznan sold the parts, which did indeed wind up being used in Iranian produced Shahed 136 drones--the same kind that have been used against Ukrainian military and citizens for close to two years in the ongoing war. According to Radio Zet fuel pump produced by Wytwórnia Sprzętu Komunikacyjnego – Poznań Sp. z o.o, this company owned by the Polish Agency for Industrial Development (ARP) was found in the remains of a Shahed, and allegedly the parts were sold to Iran Motorsazan Company. By 2023 the Polish ABW was onto the sale and in February 2023 president of WSK Poznan, Renata S., had been hit with charges, with the investigation still ongoing.

Polish Central Bureaus of Investigation (CBA) officers arrested two executives in the long-running Getback investigation, as revealed by RMF FM. In fact, a great many Getback employees have been arrested in a scandal for causing damage to the company and bondholders. But in a new twist, two executives, Pawel G. and Wojciech L., known for their work at Abris Capital Partners, a long-time major private equity fund and key investor in Getback, were detained and accused of causing more than PLN 1.3 bln in damages to the company.

The men’s residences were searched and they were hit with PLN 1 mln amounts for bail (and barred from contacting certain persons linked to the case). Both suspects pled not guilty, and Abris was quoted by Interia as having closely cooperated with authorities since the beginning of the investigation.

The Getback investigation has now lasted six years and more than 130 suspects have been detained, including company president Konrad K. Likewise, PLN 400 mln in assets have been seized.

Now in past years Yours Truly would say that the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA) looms large here. Bondholders are angry, and now it has become extremely difficult to separate Abris as an investor from Getback as an alleged perpetrator. That said, FCPA prosecutions in Europe are down (as seems to be interest) and even the FCPA Blog recently shut down.

Shrug.

The Polish Central Bureau of Investigation (CBSP) got off to a very busy start in July, and any that believed drug trafficking to and through Poland has slowed were likely being a bit too optimistic. Operations noted by the CBSP since the beginning of July include no less than the following:

• The CBSP Lodz branch shut down a synthetic drug lab and seized narcotics worth PLN 7.6 mln (approx.. 190 kilograms of narcotics).
• Krakow CBSP agents, Economic Crimes Police and Silesian customs agents shut down an illegal cigarettes and bootleg alcohol operation, arresting six red-handed and seizing PLN 350,000 in alcohol and PLN 1 mln in cigarettes.
• Rzeszow CBSP police together with Polish customs/border agents in cooperation with Spanish National Police and Europol shut down a group active in Poland, Spain, Germany, Lithuania and Ecuador. In Spain three persons were arrested and during linked raids 250 kilograms of narcotics were seized. Police in Szczecin seized 250 kilograms of marihuana, three kilograms of hash, machine guns and ammunition, a GPS suppressor, stun guns, bullet-proof vests, jewellery, Polish license plates and some PLN 565,000 in cash.The three arrested were citizens of Spain, Czechia and Bosnia. The gang likely trafficked no less than five tons of marihuana and hash to Poland worth PLN 150 mln, as well as some 500 kilograms of cocaine, worth PLN 150 mln. A total of 15 persons have now been arrested in what has been a long-running investigation.

• Twenty-two persons were charged with working in an organized crime group In Bialystok. The gang was primarily active in marihuana production, having likely sold as much as PLN 9 mln in product. They are also suspected as having worked with Spanish and German groups.
• CBSP police out of Olsztyn, working with the KWP detained 17 who were not only involved in synthetic narcotics production, but who were also charged with assault and enforcement (even against their own gang members). Due to the highly dangerous nature of the group, some 100 officers divided into 10 assault teams were used to make arrests, resulting in seizures of amphetamines worth PLN 180,000, raw precursors valued at PLN 155,000, and half a kilogram of cocaine worth PLN 160,000.
• Warsaw CBSP agents under the guidance of the Warsaw District Prosecutor’s Office detained 15, with 10 now in minimum three-month arrest on charges of drug distribution. Searches revealed more than16 kilograms of marijuana, more than 300 ecstasy tablets, hallucinogenic mushrooms, mephedrone, cocaine and amphetamines as well as five marihuana bushes and PLN 500,000 in cash.

Whew. That’s only for the first half of July, but it seems a lot.

Poland now has Europe’s third-largest military, and a US ballistic missile defense base has been set up and is ready to go. Strong is almost never a bad thing. As long as you can afford it.

Former Deputy Minister of Justice Marcin R. was arrested earlier this week by the Polish Internal Security Agency (ABW) and charged with 11 counts that basically add up to gross abuse of office. In short, Polish politics rarely disappoint with regard to mutual (and very acrimonious) accusations along party lines—not to mention that literally every government and every political appointee ever detained, charged or investigated has called foul and claimed its all politics.

And—as in other countries in the region—sometimes it may very well be.

Meanwhile, questions have also arisen with a former Polish ambassador to NATO, Tomasz Sz., who has been accused of getting a bit loose with classified information… having contacts with foreign agencies, being under the influence of foreign countries while drafting policy and making a bit of money along the way. This one carries a great deal of intrigue, as supposedly while the ABW was investigating Tomasz Sz., it was not exactly getting help from other agencies, and the finger-pointing has gotten ugly.

We’d best leave it at that for now.

Also ugly was the recent beating of a Ukrainian teenager that included a machete and resulted in said teenager losing his thumb. Three Polish teens, all under 17 were apprehended, and the primary, allegedly machete-wielding subject is now under temporary arrest for three months while police continue the investigation. This one was picked up by international and Ukrainian press.

And yes, a few bad apples can sour (the perception of) every batch.

Romania

The Andrew T. saga continues in Romania, as the controversial influencer, along with his brother, Tristan T., are still facing charges of human trafficking. First detained in December 2022, the pair were eventually given their freedom awaiting trial, although they were barred from leaving Romania. Then they were allowed to leave Romania but not leave the EU. Then, earlier this month, a Romanian court of appeals ruled—following an appeal by the Romanian Anti-Organized Crime agency (DIICOT) that no, no EU for you, in the sense that it’s back to the confines of Romania as the two brothers and two alleged female accomplices await judgement.

Keep in mind that this is the same extremely anti-woke Andrew T. who once appeared that he believe that in Romania he could “get away with everything” and said: “I am not a rapist, but I like the idea of just being able to do what I want. I like being free,” as cited by thelead.uk.

He might be rethinking that.

Romanian individuals and companies keep getting hit with European Public Prosecutor’s Office investigations, with five companies and three individuals indicted in early July in an EUR 1 mln fraud case. This follows EUR 19.9 mln in seizures in Italy linked to Romanian fraud that may have cost eh EU as much as EUR 92 mln.

And this also follows a EUR 2 mln IT fraud case in February, a Spanish-Romanian fraud case that may have totalled EUR 10 mln in June and an April case that likely uncovered at least EUR 1.7 mln in fraud.

Here’s a tip for fraudsters: cool it as long as former Romanian Anti-corruption Agency head (and once basketball star) Laura Kovesi is at the helm of the EPPO. Further activities at this time just are not very smart.

Slovakia

Slovak Prime Minister Robert Fico issued a statement comparing his attack—in which he was shot multiple times—to the failed assassination on US former President and presidential candidate Donald Trump. He called the attack a “carbon copy” and blamed hate politics for such attacks (pointing at the Left… and George Soros).

Serbia

The Serbian Constitutional Court overruled a 2022 decision that stopped lithium mining in Serbia due to environmental protests and concerns, and now Serbian President Aleksander Vucic appears behind it, as is German Chancellor Olaf Scholz—not to mention US-backed Rio Tinto, which has long lobbied to get production back under way in Serbia. Yet there is tremendous opposition on the ground.

Wethinks this battle is not over.

Meanwhile, the Balkans remain the Balkans in that a Serbian police officer was shot and killed and a second wounded in gunfire near Loznica and the border with Kosovo, with Serbia’s Minister of the Interior Ivica Dacic calling this an act of terrorism. Reportedly, Serbian police stopped a car with Serbian plates, but one of two persons in the vehicle emerged to shoot two officers. A German ID card and Kosovo passport with the name Artan H. was found at the scene.

The Kosovo government has advised its citizens not to travel through Serbia.

And the tension is high.

To say the least.

Miscellaneous

Here’s a spy story  that was meant to go into the War in Ukraine Update… (and the next one is coming early next week): the US CIA reportedly alerted German intelligence that Russian GRU set its sights on German arms manufacture Rheinmetall CEO Armin Papperger. Literally. According to CNN, Papperger and a number of other arms industry executive were targeted. Papperger was given German secret service protection. No information was released with regard to the other executives.

That's all for now, but if that is not a dose of weekend reading, I just do not know what is.

Be careful, stay safe and feel free to get in touch if you need due diligence, pre-transaction checks, deep HR checks or litigation support in Poland or the region.

Preston Smith is a licensed investigator/detective based out of Poalnd. He can be reached at query@cddi.pl or through the CDDI website at www.cddi.pl.

Photo credit: weapons and equipment seized during a raid by Polish CBSP police in Szczecin, which saw the seizure of narcotics, as wells  250 machine guns and ammunition, a GPS suppressor, stun guns, bullet-proof vests, jewellery, Polish license plates and some PLN 565,000 in cash. Photo courtesy the Polish CBSP.