The Higher Court in Podgorica, acting upon the proposal or initiative from the Special State Prosecutor’s Office, has implemented a temporary blockade on the disposal of real estate across Montenegro and Serbia over the last two years. This includes a total area of 2,037,245.84 m², with 48,828.84 square meters designated for residential, commercial, and garage use, while the rest comprises various types of land, orchards, gardens, swimming pools, and parking spaces…

By multiplying the square footage of the apartments and business premises under a temporary notice from the SDT by the average apartment price in Montenegro—1,850 euros as per last year’s Monstat data—it’s evident that real estate valued at over 90 million euros has been blocked on this basis over the past two years.

In the last three years since Vladimir Novović took over as the head of the institution, the SDT, in conjunction with the Special Police Department, has been conducting not only criminal investigations but also financial investigations against individuals accused of forming a criminal organization. This practice has significantly increased both the number of investigations and requests for temporary property blocks, believed to be acquired through illicit means.

Financial investigations conducted in Montenegro in previous years have shown minimal success; for example, from 2022 to 2023, the Special State Prosecutor’s Office permanently seized only two apartments and 3,063 square meters of land.

In a similar time frame, other prosecutors’ offices in Montenegro reported even lesser achievements. During the same period, the Higher State Prosecutor’s Office in Podgorica managed to confiscate just one apartment, while the Higher Prosecutor’s Office in Bijelo Polje could only secure 15 euros.

Supreme State Prosecutor Milorad Marković stated in an interview with “Vijesti” at the end of January this year that the focus of the State Prosecutor’s Office will also include conducting financial investigations at all levels in 2024.

“In 2024, remarkable results regarding the temporary seizure of property gains by the SDT were recorded. For 2025, we expect substantial results from both the basic and higher state prosecutor’s offices in this area,” Marković noted at that time.

Measures in 14 Cases

Last year, the Special State Prosecutor’s Office submitted proposals to the High Court for the imposition of interim measures, including a ban on the use or disposal of real estate in 14 cases.

The 2024 report from the Special State Prosecutor’s Office indicates that these cases encompass a total area of 479,819 square meters of real estate in Montenegro.

Additionally, last year, the SDT placed a temporary title on a 108-square meter apartment and a 19-square meter garage in Serbia, owned by an individual residing there and linked to a defendant currently under criminal and financial examination by the prosecution.

The 2023 work report of the SDT mentions their request for temporary security measures in 15 cases, which led the High Court to prohibit the disposal and use of real estate totaling 1,557,306.85 m².

At the SDT’s request, a 107.99-square meter apartment in Serbia and a 12-square meter garage were also temporarily blocked that year to prevent the potential transfer of property that might later lead to permanent confiscation.

Millions “Frozen” in Banks

In ten cases managed by the SDT last year, a total of 49,392,546 euros, 6.7 million Emirati dirhams, over 42 million Russian rubles, and 45,078 US dollars were blocked in commercial bank accounts…

“Out of these ten cases, eight stemmed from suspicious transaction reports. Based on these reports, as articulated in Article 89, paragraph 2 of the CPC, a total of 3,176,196.90 euros were blocked in Montenegro’s commercial banks. In one instance, 15,700 euros in cash were seized,” according to the SDT’s report for 2024.

In two separate instances, the Higher Court in Podgorica enacted temporary measures to block the disposal of shares and stakes in companies as requested by the SDT.

“The current market valuation of shares for two individuals facing temporary security measures totals 11,077 euros, while the total capital of the relevant legal entities amounts to 267,681 euros, with assets valued at approximately 2.3 million euros,” the SDT’s report from last year states.

During 2023, the SDT procured decisions in five cases to “freeze” an additional 6.1 million euros, along with cash seizures totaling 171,170 euros and 585 dollars.

Throughout the reporting period, eight cases arose from suspicious transaction reports, culminating in the temporary block of 7,774,405 euros across several commercial banks.

That year, the SDT directed a bank to halt the payment of 5.5 million euros considered suspicious, alongside the freezing of 581,000 shares in a single company.

Cars, Yachts, Rolex, Cartier…

In response to inquiries from “Vijesti”, the Special State Prosecutor’s Office, represented by special prosecutor and spokesperson Vukas Radonjic, revealed that they temporarily seized 25 passenger vehicles, three motorcycles, and two boats last year, along with 12 high-end wristwatches (including “Rolex” and “Cartier”), 39 watches from other brands, and 169 antiques.

The statistical overview of the SDT’s work for 2024 indicates that cars and two vessels were seized from defendants subject to criminal and financial investigations across five cases.

The 2023 report from the Special State Prosecutor’s Office also mentioned that 30 expensive watches were temporarily confiscated under their directive, including one from the “Cartier” brand, alongside 18 paintings, 39 passenger vehicles (including one “Bentley”), and eight trucks…

Valuable Property on the Coast Permanently Seized

At the close of 2023, following a concluded case in the High Court resulting in a final conviction for money laundering, multiple real estate properties across Montenegro were permanently confiscated, their current value significantly surpassing estimates made in 2007.

This property, which was determined to have been obtained through unlawful means, was initially valued at 8,000,000.00 euros. It now includes additional real estate in locations such as Herceg Novi, Perast, Bar, Podgorica, Danilovgrad, and Nikšić, which are now state-owned.

A judicial decision in this case led to the permanent forfeiture of assets from two companies due to money laundering, along with their prohibition from further operations.

During 2023, the SDT initiated three petitions for the permanent confiscation of property gains. In one instance, the request included the seizure of 436 square meters of land and a 413-square meter meadow, in addition to a Mercedes vehicle.

That same year, the SDT sought the permanent confiscation of a “Porsche Cayenne” and also filed to seize a family residence of nearly 500 square meters and over 2,500 square meters of land located in Podgorica.

Moreover, a request was made for the permanent seizure of 179 square meters of an apartment, several garages, and over 700 square meters of business premises in Budva, as well as a “Mercedes Benz” and two expensive watches—”Rolex Oyster Perpetual Client S 124 and 325″…

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