Serbian Interior Minister Ivica Dacic stated today that police acted swiftly in response to the murder of a man in central Belgrade, locating and arresting the perpetrators within an hour. He added that it was clearly a contract killing and that the assailants — one of whom is a minor — were paid to carry it out.

Speaking on TV Prva, Dacic commented on the murder that occurred yesterday in Gavrila Principa Street in the Serbian capital. He emphasized that while the number of homicides has decreased compared to 10 or 15 years ago, “there will never be a time when such things don’t happen at all, as crime follows its own logic.”

“When incidents like this occur, what’s crucial is the speed of the police response. In this case, within less than an hour, two suspects were arrested, and firearms were recovered. The bullet caliber from those weapons matched the bullets used in the shooting. From a police standpoint, the case is solved — the suspects were caught with solid evidence. As for motives and what’s behind it, that’s a matter for the ongoing investigation, and I won’t comment further,” Dacic said.

He noted that current information clearly suggests the murder was ordered.

“One of the perpetrators is a minor. It’s apparent they were paid, and that those they planned to kill had been sitting together in a local establishment. One of the two targeted men was killed,” he explained.

Regarding media speculation that the wrong person was killed, Dacic said that’s a matter for criminal investigators.

“These kinds of statements are hard to make definitively, because things evolve. Right now, what matters to me is that the police responded swiftly and made arrests. The homicide rate is four times lower than it was 20 years ago. Our citizens can see that the police are acting quickly and doing their job,” Dacic concluded.