Smuggling ring investigated across Bosnia and Montenegro border

Police in Bosnia and Herzegovina and Montenegro are investigating a lucrative cigarette smuggling operation that utilized the mountainous terrain and rural roads along the border between Republika Srpska and Montenegro.

Investigators believe Nebojša Miletić and Mladen Zirojević monitored the movements and shift changes of Bosnian border police from a house in eastern Bosnia to identify windows of vulnerability. The operation allegedly involved receiving contraband from Montenegro in the Gacko municipality.

The investigation suggests the group collaborated with Predrag and Marko Cicmil in Plužine, Montenegro. The Cicmil brothers are among nine individuals, including four police officers, currently on trial in Podgorica for involvement in an organized crime group active between 2019 and 2021. Case files also allege collusion with local police officers in Gacko and regional border police.