Decision High Prosecutorial Council not to refer the four prosecutors to Public prosecution for organized crime (JTOK) could seriously jeopardize work on the most important cases of organized crime and terrorism, warn from this prosecution for Nova.rs.
Due to the personnel deficit and interruption of continuity in conducting complex investigations, delays in proceedings, postponement of trials and additional burden on the remaining prosecutors are expected.
At the session of the High Prosecutor's Council held last week, it was decided that the prosecutors Irena Bjeloš, Aleksandar Isailović, Aleksandar Barac and Dragoljub Miladinović will not be referred to JTOK again. They were missing one vote, and their non-referral, as they say in this prosecutor's office, directly affects some of the most important investigations that are currently being conducted.
Staff deficit
JTOK informs that this prosecutor's office has been working with a serious personnel deficit for a long time and that the prosecutor referral institute was a key mechanism for preserving operational capacities.
"The decision of the High Prosecution Council at the session held on March 6, 2026, not to appoint four public prosecutors, represents one of the most serious institutional attacks on the effectiveness of the work of the Public Prosecutor's Office for organized crime in the last few months," JTOK replied to Nova.rs.
They add that, instead of eliminating the consequences of the amendments to the Law on Public Prosecutions, which stipulate that the referral of individual prosecutors ceases within 30 days of the law's entry into force, the Council's decision further deepened the institutional crisis.
"Excruciating discussion at the session"
During the session of the High Council of the Prosecution, the expert public witnessed a "painful discussion" which, according to JTOK, showed the extent of the executive power's influence on the work of the prosecution.
The multi-hour session was preceded by two in which the Council failed to even adopt the agenda.
"During the session, which lasted almost nine hours, we witnessed a discussion that showed how much influence the executive power has on the work of the public prosecutor's office and how deep the disunity of the council members is. Although diversity in opinions is good and desirable, it was anything but constructive and based on legal solutions," said JTOK.
They warn that the consequences of such a decision are certain: slowing down of investigations, prolongation of criminal proceedings and additional burden on the remaining prosecutors.
As they explain, organized crime cases, especially those involving complex financial investigations, involve a huge amount of documentation, complex financial flows and a large number of related natural and legal persons.
"The change of acting prosecutors in these cases leads to the delay of procedural actions and the loss of institutional memory, continuity in proceedings, and increases the risk of violating the principle of trial within a reasonable time," the answers say.
Critical investigations at risk
It was the prosecutors who were not reassigned who were in charge of some of the most important cases.
Prosecutor Irena Bjeloš she was working on cases related to transnational organized criminal groups, including the proceedings against members of the so-called Balkan Cartel, as well as on the case of a large seizure of marijuana in the village Konjuh.
According to the answer, Aleksandar Isailović was the only prosecutor in charge of cases related to the fight against terrorism and terrorist financing.
The decision of the High Council of Prosecutions comes after in September 2025 the director of the police, the director of the Tax Administration and the director of the Directorate for the Prevention of Money Laundering withdrew their consent to participate in the Task Force that worked on the subject of research into the financial flows of the project of modernization and reconstruction of the Hungarian-Serbian railway connection on the Novi Sad - Subotica - state border section.
The work on that case was then continued within the prosecutor's team.
JTOK says that the High Council of Prosecutions did not even make a decision on the referral of prosecutors Aleksandar Barco and Dragoljub Miladinović, who were key members of that team.
From the beginning, Barac was a member of the Strike Group, responsible for monitoring cash flows, analyzing bank transactions and checking subcontractors related to works at the railway station in Novi Sad, while Miladinović was included in the case because of his experience in monitoring financial flows and processing economic and financial crimes.
"The public must know that with such decisions of the competent institutions, a clear message has been sent to JTOK that unhindered work on this case will not be allowed and that there is deliberate institutional obstruction," they say in JTOK.
They also add that during the discussion at the Council session, no argument was presented that would call into question the expertise or professional integrity of these prosecutors.
Possible trial delays
The Public Prosecutor's Office for Organized Crime warns that the consequences of the decision will be visible already in the first days after the termination of their referral.
Already on March 12, the first in a series of main hearings in the case related to the organized criminal group of the murdered Živko Bakić could have been postponed, because the prosecutor Aleksandar Isailović worked on that case from the beginning.
"For the adequate preparation of the second prosecutor to participate in the trial, a significant period of time is necessary", replied JTOK.
They also point out that according to valid legal solutions, this prosecutor's office has no legal mechanisms to challenge or review the decision of the High Prosecutor's Council.
Pressures on JTOK
The public prosecutor's office for organized crime has been under pressure for months due to its work on cases that are considered among the most important investigations in the country.
Among them are the case of "Eaves", which refers to the flows of money spent on the reconstruction of the railway and the railway station in Novi Sad, where the canopy collapsed on November 1, 2024, as well as the subject "General Staff".
In those cases, investigations also lead to state officials - in the first case, former ministers Tomislav Momirović and Goran Vesić are suspected, while in the second case, current minister Nikola Selaković is on trial.
The head of JTOK, Mladen Nenadić, has been the target of attacks in the regime's tabloids for months, as well as criticism of some high-ranking state officials.
Source: Nova.rs
