Croatia’s anti-corruption police (USKOK) arrested the mayor of the capital city, Zagreb, and several of the city’s top administrative officials on Oct. 19 on suspicion of corruption and abuse of power relating to the city’s municipal services company, reports Deutsche Welle.

Croatian media reported that several others were arrested along with Mayor Milan Bandic, 55: Slobodan Ljubicic, the head of the municipal services company Zagrebacki Holding; and Petar Pripuz, president of CIOS Group, Croatia’s largest waste processing and recycling company.

The USKOK said the arrests were part of an investigation into possible illegal activities centered on the company that provides many of the city’s public services. However, in keeping with its usual practice, it did not release the names of those arrested and provided no further details about the possible charges.

The website of the Croatian Ministry of Interior was not more informative. “After several months of a complex criminal investigation, several persons have been arrested on suspicion of illegal activities in the city of Zagreb and the Zagrebacki Holding,” said the website.

Global Post reports that according to unofficial information, Bandic, Ljubicic and Pripuz drained money from the city’s budget through corrupt activities.

Bandic, who left the Social Democratic Party of Croatia (SDP) in 2009, ran as an independent in an unsuccessful presidential bid that year. He has been mayor of Zagreb since 2000 and is currently serving a fifth term.

Over the past decade, Bandic has been connected to several corruption probes but had never been questioned or detained.

Croatia began an anti-corruption probe in 2010 as part of its efforts to step up its EU accession bid, which resulted in the arrest and conviction of several top state officials, including former Prime Minister Ivo Sanader, reports Deutsche Welle.

Foto: Goran Jakus/PIXSELL

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