N12.T6 – Accountability of Saša Čađenović Under Review Over Statute of Limitations in ‘Telekom’ Case, Other Prosecutors Overlooked
HRA NEWSLETTER 12 – TOPIC 6
Suspended Special Prosecutor Saša Čađenović, who is currently in remand, will face potential disciplinary accountability for failing to act within legal deadlines in the “Telekom” case. The case involved charges of bribery and aiding and abetting bribery, which Čađenović had been handling since March 1, 2019 by mid-May 2021, the statute of limitations had expired. Consequently, Chief Special Prosecutor Vladimir Novović submitted a proposal to the Prosecutorial Council to establish Čađenović’s accountability.
“Because he did not act within the legally prescribed deadlines without justification, the statute of limitations for criminal prosecution in the case in question, as well as in another case, came into effect,” stated the Prosecutorial Council in response to Vijesti.
On the other hand, the Supreme State Prosecutor’s Office attributes responsibility for the expiration of the statute of limitations in this criminal case to the actions—or inaction—of former Chief Special Prosecutor Milivoje Katnić, who is currently in remand on charges of creating a criminal organization and abuse of office.
For the criminal offenses of bribery and aiding and abetting bribery, which are also the subject of the criminal complaint, the statute of limitations expired on May 15, 2021, but the responsibility lies with the earlier case handler and the previous head of the Special State Prosecutor’s Office, not the official who later made the decision,” the Supreme State Prosecutor’s Office stated.
The Supreme State Prosecutor’s Office also clarified when the statute of limitations expired in the “Telekom” case, based on the criminal complaint filed in 2019 by the NGO Mreža za afirmaciju nevladinog sektora.
“We inform the public that the statute of limitations for abuse of office and aiding and abetting abuse of office expired on March 31, 2015, for bribery on May 15, 2011, and for money laundering on May 15, 2016—well before the criminal complaint was filed by the NGO on March 1, 2019,” the Supreme State Prosecutor’s Office said.
However, questions remain as to why the Special State Prosecutor’s Office is now pursuing accountability only for Čađenović and not for other prosecutors who were responsible for investigating other criminal offenses in the “Telekom”case.
It should be recalled that MANS submitted a criminal complaint to the Special State Prosecutor’s Office against former President of Montenegro and DPS leader Milo Đukanović, his sister and lawyer Ana Kolarević, former Telekomrepresentative Oleg Obradović, Eurofond official Veselin Barović, the companies Monte Adria (Damjan Hoste) and Magyar Telekom (Tomaš Morvai).
Montenegrin Telekom was sold to Magyar Telekom in 2005, and the foreign company had to pay a $95 million fine in 2011 to settle with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) for allegedly bribing officials in North Macedonia and Montenegro to secure contracts and exclude competitors in the telecommunications sector. The SEC complaints stated that Deutsche Telekom, through its subsidiary Magyar Telekom, paid multi-million-dollar bribes to Montenegrin officials.
Suspended Special Prosecutor Čađenović is also accused of failing to act promptly in another case, for which he is in remand, by avoiding initiating criminal proceedings against members of the criminal organization led by accused Radoje Zvicer. This, among other things, forms the basis for establishing Čađenović’s criminal responsibility.
It should be recalled that he is charged with creating a criminal organization because, during the second half of 2020, he became a member of the organization led by accused Zvicer. Čađenović allegedly agreed to follow the orders and instructions of the criminal organization’s leader to conceal the perpetrators of the most serious criminal offenses.
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