In the early hours of Friday morning, Satko Zovko (formerly Kekić) was killed in a mafia confrontation on the outskirts of Ljubljana. Initial media reports that the murder victim was a protected witness in Slovenia were quickly denied by the police. Former Interior Minister Hojs believes that we are witnessing a “complete breakdown of the system” and that police information, in this case, should be taken with a grain of salt.
If it turns out that the murder victim was a protected witness after all, this would indicate a serious failure of the Slovenian security authorities, for which both Interior Minister Boštjan Poklukar and Police Director-General Senad Jušić should take objective responsibility.
The Director of the Criminal Police Directorate said yesterday, regarding the “status” of the murdered person, “I can say that the person who was killed was not in the protected witness programme and was not protected by the police.” This was a rebuttal to the morning press reports that Kekić was a protected witness.
On the other hand, the Bosnian media outlet Istraga reported that the Slovenian police had been informed in advance that Kekić’s liquidation was being prepared.
And – even more important – the murdered Kekić allegedly boasted to the investigating authorities in Bosnia and Herzegovina that he “cooperated closely with the Slovenian police and, as a result, obtained a second identity or passport under the name Satko Zovko” (source: https://istraga.ba/otkrivamo-pozadinu-mafijaskog-obracuna-u-ljubljani-slovenacka-policija-je-nedavno-obavijestena-da-cezar-priprema-likvidaciju-satka-kekica-pocetkom-godine-u-ljubljani-su-lijepljeni-plakati-sa-kekicev/).
We spoke to former police officer and Interior Minister Dr Vinko Gorenak before the police refuted media allegations about Kekić’s status. He explained to our media that the status of a protected witness “does not mean that the police are protecting this person 24 hours a day, but in particular that their identity is not revealed. If the police considered the witness to be extremely important, then other protection measures could be taken. For example, such a person could have a technical device at home to signal that he or she is in danger. In short, protected witness status does not necessarily mean that a witness is protected like a politician.”
“A complete breakdown of the system”
As former Minister of the Interior Aleš Hojs commented, Friday’s murder could be seen as a symptom of the disintegration of the security system and, moreover, perhaps even as a symptom of the links between mafia structures and the Slovenian authorities. “In this case, the information provided by the police should be taken with a grain of salt, because if we are dealing with links between mafia structures and the Slovenian authorities (police and prosecutors), which we can reasonably suspect, then it is to be expected that they will try to cover their tracks,” he said.
“I believe this is a complete breakdown of the system – first and foremost, of the police, which we can observe practically on a daily basis. Just look at how in Ljubljana, Kosovars can shoot with impunity, hang Albanian flags on police vehicles, and no one bats an eye. This is a complete breakdown of the system,” said Hojs. The former Interior Minister was referring to what happened in the centre of the capital, when a group of Albanians put up Albanian flags and fired shots in the air.
The mafia is infiltrating Slovenian society, “we should be afraid”
Hojs recalled that the growing problem of hard drugs and their peddlers was highlighted three years ago, when high traces of hard drugs were detected in the wastewaters of major Slovenian cities. He claims that at that time, the police were given guidelines on which areas to investigate, but not much has been done in the years since.
“Apparently, nothing was done about it. This mafia-like, drug-dealing structure within our society is only deepening. Frankly, we should be afraid. Those authorities who are most responsible for protecting our lives, for law and order and for the prosecution of crime, can do nothing more than close the road after such a murder,” Hojs was critical.
Gorenak, on the other hand, says that there have been similar cases in Slovenia in the past, but he believes that the intensity of mafia structures is increasing. He believes that the prosecutorial-judicial system is particularly ineffective and that it, therefore, attracts “criminals of all colours”.
It’s time for Jušić and Poklukar to step down
Friday’s mafia showdown, the incident at the Celje rally, the final decision of the Administrative Court on the illegality of the decision of the Council of Officials that Jušić meets the conditions for office – the arguments that both Interior Minister Poklukar and the Director-General of the Police should resign are getting stronger.
But as Hojs said, the level of decay is so severe that even their resignation would not be sufficient at the moment. “If you ask me, Interior Minister Poklukar and Police Director-General Jušić should have resigned “yesterday”. But even this resignation will not help the matter. The police will have to be rebuilt,” Hojs said.
Hojs believes that the Celje incident was deliberately “staged”
We also asked former Interior Minister Hojs about the incident that took place on Tuesday in front of the Celje courthouse, where a rally against injustice was taking place. The former Interior Minister is convinced that the incident was “staged” and should be investigated.
“Just look at what the police officer from the Celje protest was doing during the epidemic, how he was inviting people to protests, and his glorification of Tito on social networks. I am sure that in this case, it was not a coincidence, and that there must have been an agreement with the journalists of the national media outlet, Radio-Television Slovenia (RTVS). Their car had no place being in that (dead-end) street. I am sure that everything was staged, agreed upon and coordinated. Not to mention a breach of the rules of conduct. Of course, plain-clothes police officers can carry weapons, but they must be concealed, and these police officers entered the scene of the rally like some kind of sheriffs, with a gun under their belt, showing off their mission,” he concluded.
Ž. K.
