BRUSSELS,
Feb 2, 2004 -
Four joint investigations by the European Anti-Fraud Office and Serbian police have established that sugar plants in Pecinci, Kovacica and Sremska Mitrovica were involved in repacking imported sugar for export to EU contraries under trade concessions.
According to a memorandum of agreement signed by the European investigators and the Serbian police organised crime bureau, the repackaged sugar was then exported from Serbia-Montenegro to EU countries with a false country of origin shown.
The document notes that it was difficult to establish a link between the export sugar and the fraudulent repackaging operation.
“It is very difficult to establish the path of sugar trading on Serbian territory because of the network of shell companies which issued false documents as part of the fraud operation in an attempt to conceal the real users,” claimed the investigators.
The European Commission claims an illegal double profit has been made on sugar imported to Serbia-Montenegro at subsidised prices before being repackaged and, accompanied by false declarations, exported duty-free to EU countries under the trade concession regime.
Sugar import concessions have since been suspended.
The Vocar Lutka company from Prijepolje has already been charged in connection with the fraud.
Montenegro’s Adriatik, together with other companies, are suspected of supplying false documentation for Vocar Lutka.
The imported sugar was processed in sugar plants in Sremska Mitrovica and Zabalj.
According to the investigators’ memorandum, the evidence indicates that the major importer was MK Komerc.
The results of the investigation indicate that trucks carrying sugar for MK Komerc were redirected to Kovacica and then consigned to various companies for a range of sugar deals.
The investigators also report that local legislation lacks teeth, leaving judicial and police services without the resources for effective action against organised corporate crime.
This, they say, is compounded by a lack of cooperation between Serbia and Montenegro in international investigations.
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