Serbian Interior Minister Ivica Dacic stated today that members of the Serbian police, in cooperation with their Montenegrin colleagues, are conducting daily searches of the terrain along the border between the two countries, looking for the double murderer Alija Balijagic. He also emphasized that cooperation between the two police forces is of great importance, particularly in the fight against organized crime.
Dacic told TV Pink that the search is extremely difficult due to the inaccessibility of the terrain, but that local police officers, members of the Gendarmerie, the Special Anti-Terrorist Unit (SAJ), drones, and thermal imaging cameras are all involved, and that a large amount of information is coming in daily.
“There have been many inaccurate statements. We are checking every piece of information. We cannot say that someone is 100% sure of seeing him, because it is about recognition based on photographs, and these are people who have never seen Balijagic before,” Dacic said.
He added that the fugitive is using the border crossing and moving back and forth, but that cooperation with the Montenegrin police is significant in the search.
Dacic also said that the police acted honorably during the violent protest in Novi Sad on Tuesday and emphasized that the police had instructions to react only when necessary to avoid provoking conflicts.
Dacic said that the police had instructions to be defensive and that the police avoid interventions because they do not want to clash with citizens.
“Interventions are made only in situations where there is a drastic violation of public order, endangering the property and interests of Serbia, and when police officers are attacked,” Dacic said.
According to him, criminal charges for violence at the protest were filed based on documented evidence, and, as he added, if the police did something wrong, the prosecution and the court will correct it.
Regarding the arrest of the former Deputy President of the Provincial Government, Goran Jesic, Dacic said that he was arrested on suspicion of participating in an attack on an official and that there is video footage of this, as well as a suspicion that Jesic broke a camera at the City Hall.
