Less than a year after the police lodged a criminal complaint against a Budva businessman, Branislav Gugi Savić, and his company “Gugi Commerc” for illegal construction in the Tivat area of Opatovo, the Basic State Prosecutor’s Office in Kotor (ODT) has yet to finalize the investigation.

According to Tijana Celanovic, spokesperson and deputy head of the Kotor State Prosecutor’s Office, “The case filed against the legal entity GC DOO Budva and its responsible person BS, concerning the crime of constructing a facility without registration and building documentation, is currently still under investigation.”

Due to the ongoing nature of the proceedings, she was unable to share further details regarding the investigation.

On February 19th of the previous year, the Tivat police filed a criminal complaint against Savić and his company “Gugi Commerce” for illegal construction in the village of Opatovo within the cadastral municipality of Donja Lastva. The Police Directorate reported that inspections revealed deviations from the building permit held by “Gugi Commerce”, including an additional floor and a larger garage extension on one plot, while another plot had a building constructed with five above-ground floors and two underground floors linked to the garage, all without the necessary permits and documentation.

The police further noted that Savić and his company are suspected of obtaining over 1,100 square meters of residential space without the required building permit and technical documentation, resulting in damages exceeding 100,000 euros to the Montenegrin budget.

The Urban Planning and Construction Inspection has also prohibited further work. Although activity on the construction site has significantly diminished, it has not entirely ceased, as workers can occasionally be seen making minor modifications to the partially completed structure.

A few years ago, a conceptual design for a new boutique hotel in Opatovo, owned by Savić, was created by “Business Art,” a Podgorica-based company led by architect Mladen Krekić. This design outlined a building with a gross construction area of 718 square meters across two plots totaling 2 square meters, not accounting for the basement, which was excluded from the area calculation. Therefore, based on this conceptual design, the new building was expected to encompass a surface area of 718 square meters.

However, inspections and police findings revealed that Savić’s firm constructed almost double the amount of residential space as allowed, surpassing the conceptual design approved by the chief state architect in February 2021, which served as the basis for the primary design of the new hotel.

Savić is recognized as a key figure implicated in the Budva criminal scandals that transpired during the DPS government’s tenure in the city, which attracted the attention of the Special State Prosecutor’s Office under the leadership of former Chief Special Prosecutor Milivoje Katnic. A few years ago, he was released from Spuž Pre-trial Prison after serving five months, following a plea agreement with the special prosecutor concerning multi-million-dollar fraud in Budva. Savić, who was the godfather of the late Rajko Kuljača, the former mayor of Budva and a crucial witness in the Budva corruption cases, was expected to compensate the Municipality of Budva for millions in damages tied to various scandals involving the criminal network of the fugitive high-ranking DPS official Svetozar Marović.

Savić’s company “Gugi commerc” also undertook the construction of a concert plateau in Jaz. Prosecutorial experts determined the filed claims indicated damage of 2,100,000 euros for that project. Additionally, he pleaded guilty concerning the construction of the lower boulevard from the city post office to the Adriatic Fair, which resulted in damages to the Municipality of Budva amounting to 3,706,140.57 euros. In another suspect endeavor, the construction of a rural road leading to Krapina incurred damages of 1,150,457.67 euros.

Savić entered into two plea agreements in 2016, admitting to participating in activities that caused the Municipality of Budva approximately 6,000,000 euros in damages, enriching his company unjustly. As part of these agreements, he and “Gugi Commerc” were required to make reparations to the Municipality of Budva.

“I have no specific points to emphasize further. I accept the indictment. I am guilty of being part of a criminal organization alongside Svetozar Marović and serving as the principal decision-maker in relation to this crime. I was not pressured into admitting guilt, nor was any inducement offered,” Savić stated during the summer of 2017 in the Higher Court proceedings.

Based on his plea bargains with then-special prosecutors Saša Ćađenović and Lidija Vukčević, Savić received two six-month prison sentences for crimes otherwise punishable by two to ten years in prison. Despite the significant damages to the state, he was not fined, and through settlements, “Gugi Commerce” received only a suspended sentence, thereby exempting them from fines if they remain crime-free for a year.

Over the last decade, since he began developing his business in Tivat, Savić has been involved in multiple illegal construction cases, as well as filling and appropriation of coastal areas, but he has faced no prosecution for these activities. Following the unauthorized construction of bridges in Opatovo, the Coastal Administration established lease agreements with him concerning the illegally created coastal zones and beaches.

News