Ismet "Ćelo" Bajramović (26 April 1966Optužnica
" (18 July 2005).Kantonalno Tužilaštvo Kantona Sarajevo. – 17 December 2008Ex-Bosnian War Commander Found Dead
" (17 December 2008).Balkaninsight.com.) was a Bosnian soldier and reputed

organized crime Organized crime (or organised crime) is a category of transnational, national, or local groupings of highly centralized enterprises run by criminals to engage in illegal activity, most commonly for profit. While organized crime is generally th ...

figure from

Sarajevo Sarajevo ( ; cyrl, Сарајево, ; ''see Names of European cities in different languages (Q–T)#S, names in other languages'') is the Capital city, capital and largest city of Bosnia and Herzegovina, with a population of 275,524 in its a ...

. During the

war in Bosnia and Herzegovina The Bosnian War ( sh, Rat u Bosni i Hercegovini / Рат у Босни и Херцеговини) was an international armed conflict that took place in Republic of Bosnia and Herzegovina, Bosnia and Herzegovina between 1992 and 1995. The war ...

and specifically the

siege of Sarajevo The Siege of Sarajevo ( sh, Opsada Sarajeva) was a prolonged blockade of Sarajevo, the capital of Republic of Bosnia and Herzegovina, Bosnia and Herzegovina, during the Bosnian War. After it was initially besieged by the forces of the Yugoslav ...

, Bajramović played a key role in the defense of the city in the early days of the war.

Biography

Bajramović was born in

. Prior to the war he was a petty criminal who was in prison from 1985 to 1991. After his release, Ćelo rose to become the most powerful gangster in Sarajevo and was dubbed the "Godfather of Sarajevo" by

The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid ...

in 1993. When the war began, criminal groups were among the first to resist the

Yugoslav National Army The Yugoslav People's Army (abbreviated as JNA/; Macedonian and sr-Cyrl-Latn, Југословенска народна армија, Jugoslovenska narodna armija; Croatian and bs, Jugoslavenska narodna armija; sl, Jugoslovanska ljudska a ...

besieging

. After the initial offensive against the city devolved into a siege those same criminal groups turned to profiteering. Ćelo was one of them and at the same time was head of the military police of Sarajevo. In the fall of 1993 Bajramović was shot near the heart by a

sniper A sniper is a military/paramilitary marksman who engages targets from positions of concealment or at distances exceeding the target's detection capabilities. Snipers generally have specialized training and are equipped with high-precision r ...

.Gangs in Sarajevo Worry Diplomats
" (4 October 1993). The New York Times. He was evacuated from the city and returned in 1997. During the war he was profiled by ''

'' and '' Vanity Fair'' magazine. He also appeared in an episode of the

PBS The Public Broadcasting Service (PBS) is an American public broadcasting, public broadcaster and Non-commercial activity, non-commercial, Terrestrial television, free-to-air television network based in Arlington, Virginia. PBS is a publicly fu ...

program ''

Frontline Front line refers to the forward-most forces on a battlefield. Front line, front lines or variants may also refer to: Books and publications * ''Front Lines'' (novel), young adult historical novel by American author Michael Grant * ''Frontlines ...

'' on the story of

Romeo and Juliet in Sarajevo ''Romeo and Juliet in Sarajevo'' was an international documentary about the deaths of Admira Ismić (born May 13, 1968) and Boško Brkić (Cyrillic: Бошко Бркић; born August 11, 1968). The couple were natives of Bosnia and Herzegovina l ...

which aired in 1994.
Transcript of Romeo and Juliet in Sarajevo
" (10 May 1994). PBS Frontline. In the post war years Bajramović was often arrested on various charges; in April 2000, he was arrested for murder and spent four years in prison until his conviction was overturned. Meanwhile, Bajramović's health began to decline as a result of the bullet wound to the heart. He suffered a

tachycardia Tachycardia, also called tachyarrhythmia, is a heart rate that exceeds the normal resting rate. In general, a resting heart rate over 100 beats per minute is accepted as tachycardia in adults. Heart rates above the resting rate may be normal (su ...

and was frequently hospitalized as a result. On 17 December 2008, Bajramović committed

suicide Suicide is the act of intentionally causing one's own death. Mental disorders (including depression, bipolar disorder, schizophrenia, personality disorders, anxiety disorders), physical disorders (such as chronic fatigue syndrome), and s ...

by shooting himself in the

temple A temple (from the Latin ) is a building reserved for spiritual rituals and activities such as prayer and sacrifice. Religions which erect temples include Christianity (whose temples are typically called churches), Hinduism (whose temples ...

in his

home. His declining health was cited as the motive for the suicide.

References

External links

New York Times article
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Bajramovic, Ismet 1966 births 2008 deaths Bosniaks of Bosnia and Herzegovina Bosnia and Herzegovina Muslims Military personnel from Sarajevo Bosnia and Herzegovina gangsters Army of the Republic of Bosnia and Herzegovina soldiers Shooting survivors Suicides by firearm in Bosnia and Herzegovina Crime in Sarajevo