A Bosnian court on Friday sentenced two former Bosnian Serb officials, Momcilo Mandic and Milorad Govedarica to nine and four years in jail respectively, for organised crime and abuse of power. Mandic, former justice minister in the Bosnian Serb entity Republika Srpska (RS), and Govedarica, a banker, were charged with financial abuse in a Sarajevo bank under Serbian control. Two other officials, Mirko Sarovic, former RS president, and Milorad Bjelica, a high Bosnian Serb official, were acquitted of the charges.
The bank, Privredna Banka Srpsko Sarajevo, has been under investigation by international auditors for financial abuses and organized crime schemes, resulting in the arrest of the four last year.
After the end of the Bosnian civil war in 1995, the international community has retained a strong military and police presence and fight against organized crime has been listed as its utmost priority.
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