The Karlovac County Court's investigations centre on May 28 decided to launch an investigation of six persons suspected of attempting to extort a considerable amount of money from an entrepreneur from Cetingrad for alleged services which landed the damaged party a business deal.
The names of the suspects, who have been placed in one month's detention, have not been revealed, but the media said that Kalmeta's driver Miocic was one of them.
"A minister's chauffer could not do this without the minister finding out in two to three days," Pancic told the press. "The premier and the minister must say if a government chauffer can arrange a state deal and then go to collect the money for it."
"Is that driver just a link in the criminal chain at work in this ministry as well as in a wider segment of the state administration," Pancic wondered.
The SDP has already pointed to unlawful actions in the Ministry of the Sea, Tourism, Transport and Communications related to road-building, to which Minister Kalmeta hasn't replied, said Pancic.
"Now even more horrible things are coming out of Pandora's box. Before we talked about bribes and corruption, now we see there is also racketeering. What used to be a feature of the (ruling party) HDZ's rule in the 90s is now rearing its head again and brutally intimidating all Croatian citizens," said Pancic.
"The noose around Sanader is tightening," he said, adding that the prime minister should state if he intended to dismiss Kalmeta or fully back him up.
Linic accused the government of granting road-building deals disregarding the Public Procurement Act, saying that a deal went to one company and was carried out by another, while the contractor could not collect the money for his work.