ROME, June 17 (Hina/AR) - The Italian parliament is accelerating the bids to set up a parliamentary commission of inquiry in the case of the 1997 purchase of 29 percent of Serbian Telekom by Italian Telecom at the price of 500 million
euro.
ROME, June 17 (Hina/AR) - The Italian parliament is accelerating
the bids to set up a parliamentary commission of inquiry in the case
of the 1997 purchase of 29 percent of Serbian Telekom by Italian
Telecom at the price of 500 million euro. #L#
It seems that the money the Italian company paid for the shares
ended up in accounts of the fictitious companies, registered in
Cyprus.
The Italian "Corriera della Sera" daily has been publishing for the
third consecutive day parts of a report on an investigation in the
former Yugoslav President Slobodan Milosevic's assets. The probe
has been launched at the request of the international war crimes
tribunal's chief prosecutor, Carla del Ponte.
Some companies, set up in Cyprus for Milosevic's murky business
dealings, seem to have received the Italian money for the stock in
Serbian Telekom. The Italian parliament is now speeding up the
procedure for the establishment of the commission which would
include 20 deputies and 20 senators.
The probe, launched by the Tribunal, is being led by Norwegian
Morten Torkildsen, and the Italian paper is publishing excerpts
from his report.
In June 1997, Italian Telecom signed a contract on the purchase of
29 percent of shares of Serbian Telekom at the price of EUR500
million.
Belgrade officials informed the Italian buyers of the accounts in
which they should deposit the money. The account belonged to the
Beogradska Bank, and was opened in the European Popular Bank in
Athens.
Two weeks later the money was transferred into accounts of off shore
companies in Cyprus.
Each of three such companies received EUR160 million. One of them is
called Browncourt Enterprise Ltd., owned by a Radmila Budisin. Mrs
Budisin is cited as the owner of another company called Antextol
Trade Ldt. Investigators questioned Mrs. Budisin and she told them
that both companies had been set up without her signature. It is
established that she is a relative to the late husband of Borka
Vucic, who was the Beogradska Bank director and a very close aide of
Milosevic.
Vucic seems to have been the chief organiser of the establishment of
fictitious companies.
According to the reports, a clerk in the London-based Anglo-Yugo
Bank, Ljiljana Radenkovic, borrowed her name for the set-up of
another off shore company used for the transfer of the money.
There is a Zagorka Crovic, cited as the owner of another two
fictitious companies Hillsay and Vericon whose accounts were used
for the transfer of the Italian money as well.
Investigators are now trying to find where the money ended up
finally.
(hina) ms