According to a report from "Balkan Insight," the soon-to-be former Prime Minister of Montenegro, Dusko Markovic, is urging state prosecutors to investigate tobacco smuggling. He claims that organized crime groups facilitated a no-confidence vote in mid-August that led to his resignation.
Abazovic provided a detailed briefing to the prosecutor's office on documents outlining plans and naming individuals. According to the outgoing prime minister, cigarette smugglers have been sponsoring political groups to advance their agenda. "I expect it will cause an avalanche," Abazovic told reporters on September 5, "I have to show the roadmap of Montenegro's tobacco smuggling.
In May 2019, a report by the Balkan Investigative Reporting Network revealed that Montenegro has become a center for global tobacco smuggling. This is done through the use of "ghost" ships, shell companies, and forged documents, allowing millions of counterfeit cigarettes to enter the European Union.
According to reports, Bar port is the epicenter of this illicit trade. In recent large-scale operations, the Montenegrin police and customs authorities have seized hundreds of tons of smuggled cigarettes and over two tons of cocaine in the port.
According to reports, senior officials were involved in these plans.
In April, the authorities in Montenegro arrested Vesna Medenica, the former Chief Justice, on charges of drug trafficking and smuggling of tobacco, among other illegal activities.
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