Montenegro’s president says whoever dug an underground tunnel in a storage area of a court in the capital attacked the country and its justice system
PODGORICA, Montenegro — Montenegro’s president on Thursday called for a thorough investigation into whoever dug an underground tunnel in a storage area of a court in the country’s capital, calling the action an attack on the state and its system judicial.
“I call for full accountability and full discovery,” President Jakov Milatovic said days after the discovery of the tunnel leading from an apartment building to the high court across the street in Podgorica.
Records as well as tons of drugs and weapons seized during criminal investigations are stored in the repository, located in the basement of the courthouse. Police suspect the brazen tunnel was an attempt by criminal groups to undermine cases by stealing evidence or create a possible escape route from the courthouse.
“I hope it’s not one of those cases where the public never gets the full picture,” Milatovic said. “The tunnel is an attack on justice and on Montenegro.”
The tunnel was discovered Monday after clerks noticed disturbed items and felt a draft in the storage area, Montenegrin media reported. Authorities said the passage was about 30 meters (33 yards) long.
We still didn’t know if something was missing. Montenegrin media claimed that weapons linked to a major criminal gang had been stolen, but authorities did not confirm the information.
Prosecutors said they were searching for six people suspected of digging the tunnel and had begun questioning people in connection with the case, including the president of the High Court. The apartment where the tunnel came from was rented a few months ago, they said, without identifying the tenant or giving other details other than that no one was inside the unit when ‘they checked.
Montenegro’s police chief described the courthouse search as a “movie-like” operation that took months to prepare and execute.
Some media reports about the discovery referenced high-profile prison escapes, including that of former drug lord Joaquín “El Chapo” Guzman who escaped from a maximum security Mexican prison in 2015 via a tunnel from his cell.
Located on the coast of the Adriatic Sea, Montenegro is a key route for drug trafficking to Western Europe via the Balkans. The country, a member of NATO and a candidate for membership in the European Union, is committed to fighting crime and corruption.