Based on an order of the acting prosecutor of the Sarajevo Canton Prosecutor’s Office, investigators from the Sarajevo Canton Ministry of Interior (MUP KS) arrested Adna Mesihovic, the Minister of Science, Higher Education and Youth of Sarajevo Canton, and her assistant Dzenita Viteskic.

According a statement by the Sarajevo Canton Prosecutor’s Office and the Sarajevo Canton Ministry of Interior, the suspects are accused of the criminal offense of abuse of office or authority. More precisely, they are suspected of illegal employment practices within the ministry.

“Early this morning, the apartments of the suspects and the offices of the Ministry of Science, Higher Education and Youth of Sarajevo Canton were searched. Documentation and other items that may be used in further criminal proceedings were found.

The operation is, among other things, the result of a signed protocol for the prosecution of corruption-related crimes between the Sarajevo Canton Prosecutor’s Office, the Sarajevo Canton Anti-Corruption Office, and the Police Directorate of the Sarajevo Canton Ministry of Interior. Assistance was also provided by the Intelligence-Security Agency of Bosnia and Herzegovina,” the statement reads.

The suspects will be handed over to the further jurisdiction of the Sarajevo Canton Prosecutor’s Office after criminal processing by the Sarajevo Canton police.