Stefanovic: Police checking activities, financial transactions of four Serbian NGOs

BELGRADE - On orders from the Higher Public Prosecutor's Office in Belgrade, Serbian police on Tuesday began gathering information on the activities of four NGOs - the Centre for Research, Transparency and Accountability (CRTA), Civic Initiatives, the Policy Centre and the Trag Foundation, Chief Prosecutor Nenad Stefanovic said at a press conference.

Stefanovic said the Prosecutor's Office had also requested information from the Administration for the Prevention of Money Laundering and the National Bank of Serbia to check financial transactions conducted by the NGOs.

He said an order was in place to obtain all documentation on USAID donations to the organisations and to interview their representatives about how the donated funds had been spent, about predetermined USAID procedures for spending, as well as about similar information.

Stefanovic said the Special Anti-Corruption Department of the Prosecutor's Office had established a case and contacted the US Department of Justice with a request for information regarding suspicions recently voiced by US top state officials about USAID and about misuses of funds, potential money laundering and misspending of US taxpayer money in Serbia.