Serb mafia in Scandinavia
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The Serbian mafia in Scandinavia, also known as "Juggemaffian" ("Yugo Mafia") is an organized crime group in
Sweden Sweden, formally the Kingdom of Sweden,The United Nations Group of Experts on Geographical Names states that the country's formal name is the Kingdom of SwedenUNGEGN World Geographical Names, Sweden./ref> is a Nordic country located on ...
and
Denmark ) , song = ( en, "King Christian stood by the lofty mast") , song_type = National and royal anthem , image_map = EU-Denmark.svg , map_caption = , subdivision_type = Sovereign state , subdivision_name = Danish Realm, Kingdom of Denmark ...
. The foundations of the gang began during the mass immigration of Yugoslav guest-workers to Sweden in the 1970s. Its power base is in the cities of
Stockholm Stockholm () is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in Sweden by population, largest city of Sweden as well as the List of urban areas in the Nordic countries, largest urban area in Scandinavia. Approximately 980,000 people liv ...
and
Copenhagen Copenhagen ( or .; da, København ) is the capital and most populous city of Denmark, with a proper population of around 815.000 in the last quarter of 2022; and some 1.370,000 in the urban area; and the wider Copenhagen metropolitan ar ...
, and territory in
Malmö Malmö (, ; da, Malmø ) is the largest city in the Swedish county (län) of Scania (Skåne). It is the third-largest city in Sweden, after Stockholm and Gothenburg, and the sixth-largest city in the Nordic region, with a municipal populat ...
and
Gothenburg Gothenburg (; abbreviated Gbg; sv, Göteborg ) is the second-largest city in Sweden, fifth-largest in the Nordic countries, and capital of the Västra Götaland County. It is situated by the Kattegat, on the west coast of Sweden, and has ...
, among other cities in western Sweden.
"several Serb Brotherhood gangs operate in western Sweden."), DN.se, September 2, 2005
They received significant media attention in Sweden especially during the 1990s, thanks to flashy top-ranking members such as Dragan "Jokso" Joksović. The founder and first leader of the gang is believed to be warlord Željko "Arkan" Ražnatović,
"Arkan was considered to manage their business interests in Sweden from Yugoslavia"),
Svenska Dagbladet ''Svenska Dagbladet'' (, "The Swedish Daily News"), abbreviated SvD, is a daily newspaper published in Stockholm, Sweden. History and profile The first issue of ''Svenska Dagbladet'' appeared on 18 December 1884. During the beginning of the ...
, October 4, 2009
and the current leader is alleged to be Milan Ševo.
"Milan Ševo is nicknamed the godfather of Stockholm"),
Los Angeles Times The ''Los Angeles Times'' (abbreviated as ''LA Times'') is a daily newspaper that started publishing in Los Angeles in 1881. Based in the LA-adjacent suburb of El Segundo since 2018, it is the sixth-largest newspaper by circulation in the Un ...
, December 10, 2006


History

The beginnings of the "Yugo Mafia" came with the large waves of guest-workers from
Yugoslavia Yugoslavia (; sh-Latn-Cyrl, separator=" / ", Jugoslavija, Југославија ; sl, Jugoslavija ; mk, Југославија ;; rup, Iugoslavia; hu, Jugoszlávia; rue, label=Pannonian Rusyn, Югославия, translit=Juhoslavija ...
to
Northern Europe The northern region of Europe has several definitions. A restrictive definition may describe Northern Europe as being roughly north of the southern coast of the Baltic Sea, which is about 54th parallel north, 54°N, or may be based on other g ...
in the 1960s and 1970s. During this time Socialist Yugoslavia was emptying its prisons and flooding Western Europe with Yugoslav criminals, many of whom created organized criminal rings in
Germany Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russia, and the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany is situated betwe ...
,
Austria Austria, , bar, Östareich officially the Republic of Austria, is a country in the southern part of Central Europe, lying in the Eastern Alps. It is a federation of nine states, one of which is the capital, Vienna, the most populous ...
,
Denmark ) , song = ( en, "King Christian stood by the lofty mast") , song_type = National and royal anthem , image_map = EU-Denmark.svg , map_caption = , subdivision_type = Sovereign state , subdivision_name = Danish Realm, Kingdom of Denmark ...
, and
Sweden Sweden, formally the Kingdom of Sweden,The United Nations Group of Experts on Geographical Names states that the country's formal name is the Kingdom of SwedenUNGEGN World Geographical Names, Sweden./ref> is a Nordic country located on ...
. One of these newly freed criminals was Željko "Arkan" Ražnatović, who in 1972 began organizing large heists and hijackings across Western Europe, accumulating a group of subordinates, wealth, and a feared reputation in the underworld. Those Yugoslavs that arrived first in New York and the first known notable people that made a name for themselves is Alexander Karalanović and Vojislav Stanimirović, and later
Boško Radonjić Boško "The Yugo" Radonjić (, ; 17 May 1943 – 31 March 2011) was a Serbian criminal, former leader of the Westies, a predominantly Irish-American gang based in New York's Hell's Kitchen. Early life Radonjić was born in 1943 in Užice. B ...
became internationally known first because of The Vizcaya Museum Robbery Heist and all the media and arrest coverage World Wide in 1971 this put Mr Stan Yugo Mafia and The YACS Crime Group on the map but back in Europe Arkan moved to Stockholm in 1974 from where he organized 5 bank robberies and 12 armed robberies across
Sweden Sweden, formally the Kingdom of Sweden,The United Nations Group of Experts on Geographical Names states that the country's formal name is the Kingdom of SwedenUNGEGN World Geographical Names, Sweden./ref> is a Nordic country located on ...
. In New York multiple heists that were so ahead of its time was happening all over New York . Arkan was at the helm of the gang until 1979, at which point he fled Sweden due to
Interpol The International Criminal Police Organization (ICPO; french: link=no, Organisation internationale de police criminelle), commonly known as Interpol ( , ), is an international organization that facilitates worldwide police cooperation and cri ...
Warrants. The YACS started pulling off lucrative Jewelry Heists and they opened the first known vault in NYC . Arkan's childhood friend Dragan "Jokso" Joksović is believed to eventually have taken control of the Serb mafia in Sweden, broadening the gang's focus from robbery to cigarette smuggling and extortion. Although indicted multiple times for drug offenses and assault, he was never convicted. Owner of several upscale Stockholm restaurants he had close ties to celebrities and politicians in Sweden - eventually being murdered by hit-men on February 4, 1998.
("He was singled out as one of the largest in the underworld"),
Aftonbladet ''Aftonbladet'' (, lit. "The evening paper") is a Swedish daily newspaper published in Stockholm, Sweden. It is one of the largest daily newspapers in the Nordic countries. History and profile The newspaper was founded by Lars Johan H ...
, February 5, 1998
In the late 1990s disagreements over money, territory and leadership caused a degree of infighting within the Serb mafia in Scandinavia. Soon after Jokso's murder, the next boss Ratko "Cobra" Đokić was shot 30 times and killed in the center of Stockholm in 2003. Cobra's son-in-law, Milan Ševo, then became the new head of the Serbian Brotherhood - being dubbed "Godfather of Stockholm". Milan survived several assassination attempts and in 2005 left Stockholm for Belgrade, Serbia, from where he is believed to have continued control of the organization. Ševo is suspected by Swedish and Serbian authorities to be behind the infamous 2009 Stockholm Helicopter Heist worth 10 million euros. In 2005, the Danish government label the Serb mafia as having a "leading role in smuggling heroin into Denmark", surpassing the Albanians and Turks in the Copenhagen drug market. Besides heroin, the Serb mafia is active in trafficking large quantities of cocaine and marijuana through Sweden and Denmark.
("6 kilos of cocaine found in investigation of 'Serbian Brotherhood' member") Copenhagen Police, 2008

("Norwegian police believe 500 kilos of marijuana was supplied by the Serbian Brotherhood") BT.dk, March 8, 2004


Popular culture

*The Danish film series '' Pusher'', features a Serbian gang. *Jens Lapidus' book ''
Snabba Cash ''Easy Money'' (Swedish title: ''Snabba cash'') is a 2006 novel by Jens Lapidus. The paperback was the fourth bestselling Swedish novel of 2007. The first book in the ''Stockholm Noir'' trilogy, it was adapted into a film in 2010 and a Netflix ...
'', which was adapted into film in ''
Easy Money A get-rich-quick scheme is a plan to obtain high rates of return for a small investment. The term "get rich quick" has been used to describe shady investments since at least the early 20th century. Most schemes create an impression that partic ...
'', features the Serb mafia in Sweden. *A biography on Milan Ševo by Swedish author
Nuri Kino Nuri Kino, (born February 25, 1965, in Tur Abdin), is a Swedish-Assyrian award-winning investigative journalist, documentary filmmaker, author and human rights expert. He is the author of several nonfiction books, and hundreds of stories and repor ...
entitled ''The Swedish Godfather''. *TV Documentary broadcast on Swedish
TV3 Channel 3 or TV 3 may refer to: Television *Canal 3 (Burkina Faso), a commercial television channel in Burkina Faso *Canal 3 (Guatemala), a commercial television channel in Guatemala *Channel 3 (Algeria), a public Algerian TV channel owned by EPTV ...
about Dragan "Jokso" Joksović titled ''Den store Jokso: Gangster eller gentleman'' ("The Great Jokso: Gangster or Gentleman"). *TV Documentary broadcast on Swedish SVT about Serb mafia in Sweden, titled ''Cigarettkriget'' ("The Cigarette War", filmed 1997–1999) *Book on crime groups in Sweden, titled ''Svensk maffia'' ("Swedish Mafia"), has a chapter on the Serb mafia in Sweden.


People

* Dragan "Jokso" Joksović, former boss 1980s-1998 assassinated * Željko Ražnatović "Arkan", founder, former boss 1970s-1980s * Ratko Djokić "Cobra", former boss 1998-2003 assassinated *
Rade Kotur Rade Kotur (born c. 1952) is a Bosnian Serb living in Sweden, where he has run a gambling empire and been involved in organized crime. Swedish newspapers have dubbed him "The Gambling King". In March 2009, he was sentenced to 14 years in prison fo ...
, leading chief in control of illegal gambling * Petar Grujić, advisor/
consigliere Consigliere ( , ; plural ) is a position within the leadership structure of the Sicilian, Calabrian, and Italian-American Mafia. The word was popularized in English by the novel ''The Godfather'' (1969) and its film adaptation. In the novel, a c ...
assassinated in 2006
"He counseled Arkan, Joksovic and Djokic."),
Los Angeles Times The ''Los Angeles Times'' (abbreviated as ''LA Times'') is a daily newspaper that started publishing in Los Angeles in 1881. Based in the LA-adjacent suburb of El Segundo since 2018, it is the sixth-largest newspaper by circulation in the Un ...
, December 10, 2006
* Dragan "Kova" Kovač, soldier killed in 1998 * Milan Ševo, current boss as of 2003, living in
Belgrade Belgrade ( , ;, ; Names of European cities in different languages: B, names in other languages) is the Capital city, capital and List of cities in Serbia, largest city in Serbia. It is located at the confluence of the Sava and Danube rivers a ...
as of 2006 * Vlasta Petrović, arrived in Sweden in the 1980s * Mille Markovic


See also

*
Serbian mafia Serbian organized crime or Serbian mafia ( sr, Cpпска мафија / Srpska mafija) are various criminal organizations based in Serbia or composed of ethnic Serbs in the former Yugoslavia and Serbian diaspora. The organizations are primari ...
*
Pink Panthers The Pink Panthers are an international jewel thief network responsible for a number of robberies and thefts described as some of the most audacious in the history of organized crime. The organization has roughly 800 core members, many of whom ...


References


Sources

* * * * * *{{cite news, title=Så här styrs den svenska maffian, url=http://wwwc.aftonbladet.se/nyheter/9807/11/mord2.html Serbian Mafia Organised crime groups in Denmark Organized crime groups in Sweden