Former high-ranking police official Zoran Lazović provided protection to Duško Roganović, a prominent member of the Kavak clan, shielding him from criminal charges. Additionally, he informed his then-colleague, Roganović’s father-in-law Duško Koprivica, about these actions.

At that time, Lazović was the head of the Sector for Combating Crime and Corruption, a pivotal unit within the Police Directorate, while Koprivica had held significant roles in the security system for many years.

As of now, both are incarcerated, while Roganović remains at large.

The involvement of Zoran Lazović in Roganović’s defense was uncovered by his son Petar Lazović in messages exchanged on the Sky app in May 2020. In these communications, the arrested police officer bragged to his criminal contacts about his father’s “services” to the underworld.

During this time, he used the alias Hermano ex Junior, through which he also communicated with police officer Ljubo Milović.

Petar Lazović has also been arrested and faces serious charges, while Milović has been on the run for nearly three years.

In early May 2020, Petar Lazović relayed to Milović details about his father’s connections, naming the fathers of gang members and emphasizing how much Zoran Lazović had assisted them. He referred to his father simply as “Z.”

In one message, he highlighted his father’s help to both a certain “M” and his deceased father, suggesting it pertained to a member of the Kavač clan who was arrested for severe offenses.

While discussing mafia activities, he proudly stated that his father had also aided then-president Milo Đukanović, whom he referred to as Lomi, and assured Milović that he had clarified to his father that Radoje Zvicer, known as Komita, had no dealings with a certain Gil.

Earlier, he had inquired if either Milović or Zvicer had any ties to Gil S.

In the same conversation, while claiming to have clarified relationships within the Kavač clan with his father, Petar Lazović also revealed a potential issue for Duško Roganović—that a witness had implicated him. He directly linked Roganović, his deceased father Niko, and an individual identified as “A” to organized crime figures involved in smuggling activities from the 1990s.

He asserted that they were connected to Vladimir Vanja Bokan, who was murdered in Athens in 2000 and had ties to cigarette smuggling during that period.

“And I told Z that Komita has nothing to do with the unfortunate Gil, as Gil is Duško’s informant, and he isn’t foolish enough to collaborate with him, Gil is in League D Division 4. That’s all… and Z aided Lomi, not because of A., Niko, and Duka, as they were all with Vanja Bokan, and once Vanja went off the rails, Z lost respect for them because of their foolish actions. Even Baka distanced himself from them… Duško R has a problem due to a protected witness who we arrested concerning Šćepan, as he informed Šćepan in 2018, which led to the little guy spilling the details about the late Vlad and Duško and Zurovac and Igor Bošnjak, as well as Mrva and Kič and others… we arrested Nana because of that; he received the motorbikes for the hit. You know how it goes; Z even took Duško Koprivica to his place and had saved him already, I know Duško cried,” wrote Petar Lazović on May 4, 2020, to Milović.

He further elaborated on what the protected witness disclosed regarding the roles of Skalja members implicated in the murder of Šćepan Roganović, though he refrained from detailing the accusations against the Roganovićs, Nemanja Zurovac, and Bošnjak.

Šćepan Roganović was killed on February 13, 2020, and the leaders and members of the Škalja clan—Igor Vukotić, Mili Bajramović, Krsto Vujić, Marko Radović, Igor Glavaš, Miloš Komar, Slavko Radulović, Miloš Gvozdenović, and Dino Ibrahimović—are held accountable for this crime.

A protected witness has been established in connection with this case.

Frequent Mentions of Helping Duško

The exchanges with Milović are not the only instances where Lazović discusses aiding Roganović; Novljanin himself noted this at the end of 2020.

At that time, he boasted to a member of his criminal organization that Zoran Lazović, then the Assistant Director of the Police Administration, successfully had him removed from an arrest list.

He also communicated to the same associate that when he was being questioned, the informal leader of the police Special Operational Support Team, Petar Lazović, treated him like a comrade, assuring him in confidence that his father, through Milivoje Katnić, had facilitated his exemption from prosecution.

This information is part of the case file prepared by the Special State Prosecutor’s Office against Zoran Lazović, the former head of the Sector for Combating Organized Crime and Corruption (SBPOKK), and Milivoj Katnić, both arrested on April 14, 2024.

Less than twenty days before Roganović claimed to have been taken off the arrest list, the younger Lazović informed Radoje Zvicer, through the now-defunct Sky application, that they had coordinated to avoid Roganović’s arrest.

“Brother, I just secured alignment about the operations scheduled for the morning in HN. What was anticipated earlier is now happening in the morning, with six individuals being arrested around Roganović. Duško is untouchable as I told you, but those around him are,” he communicated to Zvicer on December 3, 2020.

Junior Lazović was detained on July 18, 2022, coinciding with Milović’s evasion of arrest.

Both of them, alongside Zvicer, are implicated in indictments filed by the Special State Prosecutor’s Office, which accuses them of being members of the so-called police drug cartel.

This criminal organization, affiliated with the fugitive Milović donning a police badge, is accused of smuggling cocaine from South America to Europe for years; investigators have uncovered evidence of several tons of this illicit substance being trafficked.

The drugs were shipped to Europe via the port of Bar, as well as through Antwerp, Germany, and Turkey.

Europol supplied Montenegrin investigators with complete transcripts of conversations conducted through the encrypted Sky application as evidence of this drug operation.

Reviewing this evidence, the Special State Prosecutor’s Office (SDT) determined that Milović had drawn in several colleagues—both current and former police officers, primarily those he was close to—into this criminal venture.

Each had defined roles within the organization. Allegedly, some were tasked with utilizing their official power to ensure their honest colleagues were not on their trail and to warn of any threats that could arise…

Others were charged with establishing networks to cleanse dirty money through legitimate channels.

The SDT accuses this group of being a criminal enterprise, involved in money laundering, unauthorized production, possession and trafficking of narcotics, as well as illegal possession of weapons and explosives.

Zvicer was recently added to the list of most wanted fugitives, with legal proceedings pending against him in multiple countries.

Postponed Murder as a Tribute to Z.

In early May 2020, while writing almost daily about Zvicer and offering support for him and his family through Milović, arrested officer Petar Lazović stated he was doing so “because he is a Montenegrin.”

He then elaborated that he holds such a position “as he is a friend of friends.”

“And thirdly, he has demonstrated that he is indeed a friend.”

In a conversation on May 3, 2020, he informed Milović that he had told his father their criminal faction had decided against a planned murder that night, out of respect for him.

“You know, I’m helping myself and will do whatever I can to convince Z with everything possible. I mentioned last night that someone should be taken out, but in deference to him, they postponements, affirming that you’re done with it, as instructed,” he sent.

He also assured them of his willingness to assist.

“I know it must be done, even with respect to Z, and that’s warranted. And I’ll help them there. You see what we can achieve, I’ll do everything, because I despise them; they would eliminate all of us if given the chance,” he conveyed that day, subsequently relaying information regarding the Skalja clan, indicating that his colleague from the police Special Operational Support Team had provided it.

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