PODGORICA, 18.05.2026. – The trial of the defendants accused in the murder of Podgorica businessman Miodrag Kruščić and the attack on investigative journalist Olivera Lakić continued today before the High Court in Podgorica.
At the very start of the hearing, proceedings were briefly adjourned to allow defendant Mijajlo Stojanović to contact his lawyer, who had failed to appear in court. After Stojanović’s defense attorney arrived, another recess was called after lawyer Marko Milošević stated that on Saturday, May 16, he had sent a formal request by registered mail seeking the recusal of presiding judge Radovan Vlaović.
The court rejected the request, ruling that it – like the defense’s previous motions for recusal – was “manifestly unfounded” and aimed at delaying the proceedings.
Defendant Goran Rakočević requested that his detention be lifted and replaced with house arrest, claiming that his right to a fair trial had been violated and that there was no evidence linking him to the crimes he is charged with.
He also said he had been in custody since the summer of 2018 and claimed that, once the court begins presenting evidence, it will see a series of Sky application messages involving individuals who, according to Rakočević, orchestrated the entire case in order to “boast to the European Union about solving it.”
The court dismissed Rakočević’s request as unfounded, explaining that a decision extending his detention had already been issued and noting that he is, among other charges, accused of aggravated murder.
The indictment filed by the Special State Prosecutor’s Office includes Milan Vujotić, Goran Rakočević, Filip Bešović, Sanja Božović, Veselin Bubanja, Luka Bulatović, Dejan Vukašinović, Darko Lalović, Branislav Karadžić, Mario Milošević, Mijajlo Stojanović, Aleksandar Ljumović, Filip Knežević and Goran Vukčević.
They are charged in connection with the attack on former Vijesti journalist Olivera Lakić on May 8, 2018, and the murder of Miodrag Kruščić on May 21 of the same year. In addition, they are accused of smuggling 554 kilograms of marijuana from Albania into Montenegro on January 26, 2021, as well as several other serious criminal offenses, including forming a criminal organization, aggravated murder, murder by incitement, illegal possession of weapons, and the unauthorized production and trafficking of narcotics.
T. Radulović