Serbian Minister Accused of Accessing Wiretaps of President’s Calls

Officials from Serbia's ruling Serbian Progressive Party on Monday called for an investigation into Defence Minister Nebojsa Stefanovic after a former Interior Ministry official, Dijana Hrkalovic, who is currently on trial for alleged influence-peddling, accused him of gaining access to transcripts of covertly-recorded phonecalls involving President Aleksandar Vucic.

Hrkalovic told tabloid Objektiv that Stefanovic, who was her boss when he was interior minister before being given the defence post, "got unauthorised insight into the contents of telephone communications of the president and members of his family".

"He read transcripts of [Vucic's] conversations, without the president's knowledge, behind his back," she claimed.

Hrkalovic, who was released from house arrest 20 days ago, claimed that Stefanovic took no action to shield the president, "nor did he inform the BIA [Serbian Security Intelligence Agency] so it could take measures within its competence for the counter-intelligence protection of the president".

Stefanovic said in a statement on Sunday that he was being subjected to "the most vile slander and monstrous lies, which is characteristic of those who are guilty and who are trying to lessen their guilt and shift it on someone else.

He said he will respond to "the new wave of lies spread by defendant Hrkalovic, as well as part of the media machinery owned by Veljko Belivuk's closest associates".

Veljko Belivuk is an alleged organised crime gang boss and leader of the Janjicari, (Janissaries) a notorious Partizan Belgrade football club fan group with connections to private security contractors and a number of state officials. Belivuk was arrested along with other alleged gang members in February last year on...