The Italians were eager to prosecute Milo Đukanović for smuggling and tax evasion related to the tobacco business, as Italy lost hundreds of millions in uncollected taxes. However, the Americans vehemently opposed this, telling the Italians to leave the Montenegrin leader alone.
In 1998, U.S. President Bill Clinton sent his envoy, Richard Sklar, to Rome to negotiate on behalf of Đukanović, whom Clinton considered a partner. The Americans protected the Montenegrin president. Washington greatly needed Đukanović in its struggle against Serbia and its leadership. Đukanović, an opponent of Slobodan Milošević and pro-Western, thus enjoyed tacit support from the West, allowing Montenegro’s tobacco mafia to continue operating freely.
Americans Protect Đukanović
Although NATO bombed Montenegro during the 1999 bombing of Yugoslavia, Đukanović remained pro-Western and provided refuge to anti-Milošević dissidents in his country. Despite the conflict between Milošević and Đukanović, many Montenegrin and Serbian mafiosi continued to cooperate closely in cigarette smuggling and profit-sharing. After the NATO bombing of Serbia and Montenegro ended in June 1999, Clinton told his Montenegrin counterpart to stop illegal cigarette smuggling. Two years later, British intelligence confirmed that he had done so. However, the smuggling did not cease, and the mafia’s extensive network continued to thrive.
The Fall of Bokan and Marko Milošević
On the morning of October 7, 2000, Vanja Bokan was hit by a hail of 25 bullets from two semi-automatic rifles as he exited his car. He was killed for speaking too much publicly. Two days earlier, the Bulldozer Revolution had ousted Serbian leader Slobodan Milošević. Furious about being pushed out of the Serbian-Montenegrin market by competitors, Bokan had revealed secrets about illegal nicotine smuggling to the Greek media, exposing names linked to the mafia. A large number of mafia figures and criminals were killed between the assassination of Arkan in January and Milošević’s downfall in October 2000. After his father’s fall, Marko Milošević fled to Russia, where he was granted asylum.
The Unrivaled Cane
After Bokan’s assassination and Milošević Jr.’s exile, Stanko Subotić Cane became the unrivaled king of the tobacco mafia in Montenegro and the Western Balkans. Officially a respected businessman, he earned billions through various ventures, which were actually fronts for illegal cigarette trade. He continued to enjoy support from Montenegrin state structures, including Đukanović. Despite indictments from Serbia and Italy, Subotić never faced consequences. The illegal cigarette trade persisted and shows no signs of stopping.
The Indestructible Tobacco Business
In 2004, Duško Jovanović, editor-in-chief of the Montenegrin daily Dan, was assassinated for investigating the tobacco mafia. Four years later, Ivo Pukanić, editor-in-chief of Nacional, was murdered in Zagreb.
After the Montenegrin government led by Dritan Abazović was ousted in August 2022, the former prime minister claimed that Montenegro’s tobacco mafia was behind his removal. Parliament passed a vote of no confidence, initiated by Đukanović’s Democratic Party of Socialists (DPS). Abazović stated that the construction company Bemax, allegedly involved in cigarette smuggling and linked to DPS figures, orchestrated the attacks against him.
In the summer of 2022, Montenegrin police seized a massive shipment of cigarettes worth €21 million at the Port of Bar. Occasional seizures and arrests occur, such as in February 2024, when EUROPOL facilitated the arrest of five police officers and six businessmen smuggling cigarettes from the UAE to Montenegro and reselling them across the former Yugoslavia. However, the illegal tobacco trade continues with all its adverse consequences.
Author: Matija Šerić
