Eurasia Press & News
A Kosovo court sentenced Kosovo Serb businessman Jevro Pantelic to nine years’ jail for money laundering and other offences.A Kosovo court on Thursday sentenced Jevro Pantelic to nine years in jail for money laundering and organized crime, the EU rule of law mission, EULEX, said.
Pantelic a businessman from the northern Serb-run part of Kosovo, was arrested in May 2011 by EULEX police and charged on six counts, varying from petrol smuggling to being part of an organized crime network.
The mixed panel of EULEX and Kosovo judges at Mitrovica’s District Court acquitted him of three charges of smuggling goods, tax evasion and evading duties.
The court found Pantelic guilty of being part of an organized criminal group “consisting of Jordan Raskovic, Srdjan Drobnjak, Miljan Radisaljevic and Milojko Radisavljevic.”
Pantelic then received “an aggregate punishment of nine years’ imprisonment.”
In addition he was ordered to pay a fine of 2,000 euro. A pistol and ammunition, two vehicles and over 14,000 euro of money in cash that were seized during his arrest were confiscated.
The north of Kosovo, which remains largely under the control of Serbia, rejects the authorities in Pristina, who have demanded that EULEX establish greater control over the region.
A Belgrade magazine, Novi Magazin, linked the accused to the Kosovo Serb businessman Zvonko Veselinovic, wanted by the Kosovo authorities on nine criminal charges, including the murder of a Kosovo police officer, an attack on UN and NATO personnel and petrol smuggling.
