Alleged Serbian drug lord Darko Šaric submitted false information in his application for Slovak citizenship in 2005, Interior Minister Robert Kaliňák said on February 25, the TASR newswire reported.
An investigation conducted by the ministry revealed that Šaric lied about his permanent residence as well as his employment in Slovakia. “A notification that his Slovak citizenship is denied along with a demand to return the original Slovak citizenship documents has been sent to Šaric's permanent address,” Kaliňák said, adding that police and Interpol have already been informed about the decision.
“Šaric's Slovak citizenship, granted in December 2005 and effective in January 2006, during the tenure of former interior minister Vladimír Palko (KDH), was granted on the basis of falsified information and documents,” Kaliňák told TASR. In his application, Šaric claimed he had long-term residence in Slovakia in 1998-2004, which was allegedly corroborated by the statement of Border and Foreigner Police department in Trenčín. Kaliňák refutes that claim, however, saying that the police department in question has no record of ever issuing such a statement.
Šaric also produced two working contracts with a company based in Nová Dubnica (Trenčín region), for which he supposedly worked in 1999-2005.
“The state-insurer Sociálna Poisťovňa has confirmed that this company didn't deduct any contributions for Šaric within the period of 1999-2005, nor was he registered as a self-employed person,” said Kaliňák, adding that the company went out of business in 2006 – and related legal procedures had begun as early as 2004. Furthermore, the Health Care Supervisory Authority (UDZS) reported that the alleged drug dealer did not have any health insurance.
Kaliňák said that Šaric arrived in Slovakia on May 7, 2005 and married a Slovak woman on the same day. “Two days later, he applied for a permanent residency permit in Slovakia on the grounds of uniting his family.” The permit was granted on May 30, 2005, with Šaric filing divorce papers a day after getting his Slovak citizenship.
Šaric, who is on the run and wanted by Interpol, is allegedly an important member of a narcotics clan headed by the Montenegrin Mafia that also controls cocaine fields in South America. TASR
Compiled by Zuzana Vilikovská from press reports
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