Željko Ražnatović
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Željko Ražnatović (, ; 17 April 1952 – 15 January 2000), better known as Arkan (), was a Serbian
warlord Warlords are individuals who exercise military, Economy, economic, and Politics, political control over a region, often one State collapse, without a strong central or national government, typically through informal control over Militia, local ...
,
mobster A gangster (informally gangsta) is a criminal who is a member of a gang. Most gangs are considered to be part of organized crime. Gangsters are also called mobsters, a term derived from '' mob'' and the suffix '' -ster''. Gangs provide a level ...
and head of the
Serb The Serbs ( sr-Cyr, Срби, Srbi, ) are a South Slavic ethnic group native to Southeastern Europe who share a common Serbian ancestry, culture, history, and language. They primarily live in Serbia, Kosovo, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Croatia ...
paramilitary force called the
Serb Volunteer Guard The Serb Volunteer Guard, SDG. Also known as Arkan's Tigers () or Arkan's men (). was an elite Serbian volunteer paramilitary unit founded and led by Željko Ražnatović (better known as "Arkan"). It was recognized for its superior bearing an ...
during the
Yugoslav Wars The Yugoslav Wars were a series of separate but related#Naimark, Naimark (2003), p. xvii. ethnic conflicts, wars of independence, and Insurgency, insurgencies that took place from 1991 to 2001 in what had been the Socialist Federal Republic of ...
, considered one of the most feared and effective paramilitary forces during the wars. His paramilitary unit was responsible for numerous crimes in Eastern Bosnia, including murder, pillaging, rape and ethnic cleansings. Arkan was one of the most celebrated and iconic figures in Serbia during his time. Arkan was on
Interpol The International Criminal Police Organization – INTERPOL (abbreviated as ICPO–INTERPOL), commonly known as Interpol ( , ; stylized in allcaps), is an international organization that facilitates worldwide police cooperation and crime cont ...
's top 10 most wanted list in the 1970s and 1980s for robberies and murders committed in countries across Europe, he escaped jail twice, and was later indicted by the
International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia The International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia (ICTY) was a body of the United Nations that was established to prosecute the war crimes in the Yugoslav Wars, war crimes that had been committed during the Yugoslav Wars and to tr ...
for
crimes against humanity Crimes against humanity are certain serious crimes committed as part of a large-scale attack against civilians. Unlike war crimes, crimes against humanity can be committed during both peace and war and against a state's own nationals as well as ...
. Up until his assassination in January 2000, Ražnatović was the most powerful
organized crime Organized crime is a category of transnational organized crime, transnational, national, or local group of centralized enterprises run to engage in illegal activity, most commonly for profit. While organized crime is generally thought of as a f ...
figure in the Balkans, as well as the most powerful state-sponsored
gangster A gangster (informally gangsta) is a criminal who is a member of a gang. Most gangs are considered to be part of organized crime. Gangsters are also called mobsters, a term derived from ''Organized crime, mob'' and the suffix ''wikt:-ster, -st ...
in Serbia. Ražnatović had links to Avraham Golan, an infamous security contractor.


Early life

Željko Ražnatović was born in Brežice, a small border town in
Lower Styria Styria (, ), also known as Slovenian Styria (; ) or Lower Styria (; ) to differentiate it from Austrian Styria, is a traditional region in northeastern Slovenia, comprising the southern third of the former Duchy of Styria. The population of St ...
, PR Slovenia,
FPR Yugoslavia The Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia (commonly abbreviated as SFRY or SFR Yugoslavia), known from 1945 to 1963 as the Federal People's Republic of Yugoslavia, commonly referred to as Socialist Yugoslavia or simply Yugoslavia, was a country ...
. His father, Veljko Ražnatović served as a decorated officer in the SFR-Yugoslav Air Force, being highly ranked for his notable involvement in World War II. Veljko was stationed in Slovenian Styria at the time when his fourth child Željko was born. Infant Ražnatović spent part of his childhood in
Zagreb Zagreb ( ) is the capital (political), capital and List of cities and towns in Croatia#List of cities and towns, largest city of Croatia. It is in the Northern Croatia, north of the country, along the Sava river, at the southern slopes of the ...
and
Pančevo Pančevo (Serbian Cyrillic: Панчево, ; ; ; ; ) is a list of cities in Serbia, city and the administrative center of the South Banat District in the autonomous province of Vojvodina, Serbia. It is located on the shores of rivers Timiș (ri ...
before his father's job eventually took the family to the Yugoslav capital of
Belgrade Belgrade is the Capital city, capital and List of cities in Serbia, largest city of Serbia. It is located at the confluence of the Sava and Danube rivers and at the crossroads of the Pannonian Basin, Pannonian Plain and the Balkan Peninsula. T ...
, which is considered his hometown. He grew up with three older sisters in a strict, militaristic patriarchal household with regular
physical abuse Physical abuse is any intentional act causing injury or trauma to another person or animal by way of bodily contact. In most cases, children are the victims of physical abuse, but adults can also be victims, as in cases of domestic violence or ...
from his father. In a 1991 interview, he recalled: "He didn't really hit me in a classical sense, he'd basically grab me and slam me against the floor." As a child, Ražnatović was considered to be a "problem child" by his teachers who regularly complained of his unruly behavior. In his youth, Ražnatović aspired to become a pilot as his father had been. Due to the highly demanding and significant positions of his parents, there appeared to be very little time in which a bond was able to be established between parents and children. Ražnatović's parents eventually divorced during his teenage years. Ražnatović was arrested for the first time in 1966 for snatching women's purses around Tašmajdan Park, spending a year at a juvenile detention center not far from Belgrade. His father then sent him to the seaside town of
Kotor Kotor (Cyrillic script, Cyrillic: Котор, ), historically known as Cattaro (from Italian language, Italian: ), is a town in Coastal Montenegro, Coastal region of Montenegro. It is located in a secluded part of the Bay of Kotor. The city has ...
in order to join the
Yugoslav Navy The Yugoslav Navy ( sh-Cyrl-Latn, Југословенска ратна морнарица, Jugoslavenska ratna mornarica, Yugoslav War Navy), was the navy of Yugoslavia from 1945 to 1992. It was essentially a coastal defense force with the miss ...
, but Ražnatović had other plans (ending up in
Paris Paris () is the Capital city, capital and List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, largest city of France. With an estimated population of 2,048,472 residents in January 2025 in an area of more than , Paris is the List of ci ...
at the age of 15). In 1969, Ražnatović was arrested by French police and deported home, where he was sentenced to three years at the detention center in
Valjevo Valjevo (Serbian Cyrillic: Ваљево, ) is a List of cities in Serbia, city and the administrative center of the Kolubara District in western Serbia. According to the 2022 census, the city itself has a population of 56,145 while the city admini ...
for several
burglaries Burglary, also called breaking and entering (B&E) or housebreaking, is a property crime involving the illegal entry into a building or other area without permission, typically with the intention of committing a further criminal offence. Usually ...
. During this time, he organized his own gang in the prison. In his youth, Ražnatović was a
ward Ward may refer to: Division or unit * Hospital ward, a hospital division, floor, or room set aside for a particular class or group of patients, for example the psychiatric ward * Prison ward, a division of a penal institution such as a pris ...
of his father's friend, the Slovenian politician and Federal Minister of the Interior,
Stane Dolanc Stane Dolanc (16 November 1925 – 13 December 1999) was a Slovenian communist politician during SFR Yugoslavia. Dolanc was one of president Josip Broz Tito's closest collaborators and one of the most influential people in Yugoslav federal p ...
. Dolanc was chief of the Directorate for State Security (UDBA) and a close associate of
President President most commonly refers to: *President (corporate title) * President (education), a leader of a college or university *President (government title) President may also refer to: Arts and entertainment Film and television *'' Præsident ...
Josip Broz Tito Josip Broz ( sh-Cyrl, Јосип Броз, ; 7 May 1892 – 4 May 1980), commonly known as Tito ( ; , ), was a Yugoslavia, Yugoslav communist revolutionary and politician who served in various positions of national leadership from 1943 unti ...
. Whenever Ražnatović was in trouble, Dolanc helped him, allegedly as a reward for his services to the UDBA, as seen in the escape from the Lugano prison in 1981. Dolanc is quoted as having said: "One Arkan is worth more than the whole UDBA."


Criminal career


Western Europe

In 1972, aged 20, Ražnatović migrated to Western Europe. Abroad, he was introduced to and kept contact with many well-known criminals from Yugoslavia, such as
Ljuba Zemunac Ljuba may refer to: * Ljuba (given name), a Slavic given name * Ljuba, Serbia, a village in Syrmia, Vojvodina * 1062 Ljuba 1062 Ljuba, provisional designation , is a carbonaceous background asteroid from the outer regions of the asteroid belt, ...
,
Ranko Rubežić Ranko Rubežić (born 1951 in Peć, PR Serbia, FPR Yugoslavia — died 19 February 1985 in Belgrade, SR Serbia, SFR Yugoslavia) was a Serbian gangster and criminal. A prominent crime figure in Belgrade known locally as the "Serbian Dutch Schult ...
, Đorđe "Giška" Božović, and
Goran Vuković Goran Vuković (; 1959 – 12 December 1994) was a Serbian gangster who earned his nickname ''Majmun'' () due to his unique style of breaking and entering apartment building units: climbing and scaling the structures, utilizing balconies and ...
, all of whom were also occasionally contracted by the
UDBA The State Security Service, also known by its original name as the Directorate for State Security, was the secret police organization of Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia, Communist Yugoslavia. It was at all times best known by the acrony ...
, and all of whom have since been assassinated or otherwise died. Ražnatović took the nickname "Arkan" from one of his forged
passport A passport is an official travel document issued by a government that certifies a person's identity and nationality for international travel. A passport allows its bearer to enter and temporarily reside in a foreign country, access local aid ...
s. On 28 December 1973, he was arrested in Belgium following a bank robbery, and was sentenced to ten years in prison. In 1974, Ražnatović was active in
Sweden Sweden, formally the Kingdom of Sweden, is a Nordic countries, Nordic country located on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. It borders Norway to the west and north, and Finland to the east. At , Sweden is the largest Nordic count ...
and among other crimes robbed a bank in
Kungälv Kungälv () is a cities of Sweden, city and the seat of Kungälv Municipality in Västra Götaland County, Sweden. It is also a part of Greater Gothenburg Metropolitan Area. It had 22,768 inhabitants in 2010. In 2021, the main Kungälv - Ytterby - ...
. Ražnatović managed to escape from the
Verviers Verviers (; ) is a city and municipality of Wallonia located in the province of Liège, Belgium. The municipality consists of the following districts: Ensival, Heusy, Lambermont, Petit-Rechain, Stembert, and Verviers. It is also the cent ...
prison on 4 July 1979. Although he was apprehended in the Netherlands on 24 October 1979, the few months he was free were enough for at least two more armed robberies in Sweden and three more in the Netherlands. Serving a seven-year sentence at a prison in
Amsterdam Amsterdam ( , ; ; ) is the capital of the Netherlands, capital and Municipalities of the Netherlands, largest city of the Kingdom of the Netherlands. It has a population of 933,680 in June 2024 within the city proper, 1,457,018 in the City Re ...
, Ražnatović pulled off another escape on 8 May 1981 after someone slipped him a gun. Wasting no time, more robberies followed, this time in
West Germany West Germany was the common English name for the Federal Republic of Germany (FRG) from its formation on 23 May 1949 until German reunification, its reunification with East Germany on 3 October 1990. It is sometimes known as the Bonn Republi ...
, where after less than a month of freedom he was arrested in
Frankfurt Frankfurt am Main () is the most populous city in the States of Germany, German state of Hesse. Its 773,068 inhabitants as of 2022 make it the List of cities in Germany by population, fifth-most populous city in Germany. Located in the forela ...
on 5 June 1981 following a jewellery store stickup. In the ensuing shootout with police he was lightly wounded, resulting in his placement in the prison hospital ward. Looser security allowed Ražnatović to escape again only four days later, on 9 June, supposedly by jumping from the window, beating up the first passerby and stealing his clothing before disappearing. His final Western European arrest occurred in
Basel Basel ( ; ), also known as Basle ( ), ; ; ; . is a city in northwestern Switzerland on the river Rhine (at the transition from the High Rhine, High to the Upper Rhine). Basel is Switzerland's List of cities in Switzerland, third-most-populo ...
, Switzerland, during a routine traffic check on 15 February 1983. However, he managed to escape again within months, this time from Thorberg prison on 27 April. It is widely speculated that Ražnatović was closely affiliated with the
UDBA The State Security Service, also known by its original name as the Directorate for State Security, was the secret police organization of Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia, Communist Yugoslavia. It was at all times best known by the acrony ...
throughout his criminal career abroad. He had convictions or warrants in Belgium (bank robberies, prison escape), the Netherlands (armed robberies, prison escape), Sweden (twenty burglaries, seven bank robberies, prison escape,
attempted murder Attempted murder is a crime of attempt in various jurisdictions. Canada Section 239 of the ''Criminal Code'' makes attempted murder punishable by a maximum of life imprisonment. If a gun is used, the minimum sentence is four, five or seve ...
), West Germany (armed robberies, prison escape), Austria, Switzerland (armed robberies, prison escape), and Italy. Ražnatović had achieved the status in the Belgrade underworld of earning ''"strahopoštovanje"'', a Serbo-Croat phrase that roughly translates as being "respected for fear". ''Strahopoštovanje'' was generally achieved in the Yugoslav underworld by committing violent crimes in Western Europe, being arrested and convicted, serving a sentence in a Western European prison, and terrorizing the other inmates to such an extent that the said criminal became the most feared inmate in the prison. In the macho world of the Yugoslav underworld, having ''strahopoštovanje'' status was seen as proof of a criminal's toughness and masculinity.


Return to Yugoslavia

Ražnatović returned to Belgrade in May 1983, continuing his criminal career by managing a number of illegal activities. In November of that year, six months after his return, a bank in Zagreb was robbed with the thieves leaving a rose on the counter (allegedly Ražnatović's signature from his robberies in Western Europe). Looking to question Ražnatović about his whereabouts during the robbery, two policemen, members of the Secretariat of Internal Affairs' (SUP) Tenth department from the Belgrade municipality of Palilula, showed up in civilian clothing at his mother's apartment on 27 March Street in Belgrade. Ražnatović happened to not be home at the moment, so the policemen introduced themselves to his mother as "friends of her son looking to return a cash debt they owed him" and asked the woman if they could wait for him to return to the apartment. Ražnatović's mother phoned him to say that two unknown males waited for him. Ražnatović showed up with a
revolver A revolver is a repeating handgun with at least one barrel and a revolving cylinder containing multiple chambers (each holding a single cartridge) for firing. Because most revolver models hold six cartridges before needing to be reloaded, ...
and proceeded to shoot and wound both policemen. He was detained immediately; however, barely 48 hours later, he was released. The occurrence made it clear to all observers, especially his criminal rivals, that he enjoyed protection from the highest echelons of the Yugoslav state security establishment. Ražnatović spent the mid-1980s running the Amadeus
discothèque A nightclub or dance club is a club that is open at night, usually for drinking, dancing and other entertainment. Nightclubs often have a bar and discotheque (usually simply known as disco) with a dance floor, laser lighting displays, and a ...
together with Žika Živac and Tapi Malešević. Located in the Tašmajdan neighbourhood, the nightclub was reportedly another perk of their contractual work for the UDBA. Moreover, Ražnatović could be seen driving around Belgrade in a pink
Cadillac Cadillac Motor Car Division, or simply Cadillac (), is the luxury vehicle division (business), division of the American automobile manufacturer General Motors (GM). Its major markets are the United States, Canada and China; Cadillac models are ...
and gambling on
roulette Roulette (named after the French language, French word meaning "little wheel") is a casino game which was likely developed from the Italy, Italian game Biribi. In the game, a player may choose to place a bet on a single number, various grouping ...
in casinos all over the country, from Belgrade (Hotel "Slavija") and nearby
Pančevo Pančevo (Serbian Cyrillic: Панчево, ; ; ; ; ) is a list of cities in Serbia, city and the administrative center of the South Banat District in the autonomous province of Vojvodina, Serbia. It is located on the shores of rivers Timiș (ri ...
to
Sveti Stefan Sveti Stefan ( Montenegrin and Serbian: Свети Стефан, ; lit. "Saint Stephen") is a town in Budva Municipality, on the Adriatic coast of Montenegro, approximately southeast of Budva. The town is known for the Aman Sveti Stefan resort ...
(Hotel Maestral on the Miločer beach) and
Portorož Portorož (; ) is a Slovenian Adriatic seaside resort and spa settlement located in the Municipality of Piran in southwestern Slovenia. Its modern development began in the late 19th century with the vogue for the first health resorts. In the earl ...
(Hotel Metropol). An avid gambler, following a private game of
poker Poker is a family of Card game#Comparing games, comparing card games in which Card player, players betting (poker), wager over which poker hand, hand is best according to that specific game's rules. It is played worldwide, with varying rules i ...
in an apartment at Ive Lole Ribara Street in Belgrade, Ražnatović got into an elevator altercation with a tenant from the apartment building, reportedly breaking the man's arm after beating him with a gun. Ražnatović could not avoid being charged this time and the trial saw a notable exchange between him and the judge; during the pre-session identification, Ražnatović stated he was an employee of the Secretariat of Internal Affairs (SUP). When this was challenged by the
prosecutor A prosecutor is a legal representative of the prosecution in states with either the adversarial system, which is adopted in common law, or inquisitorial system, which is adopted in Civil law (legal system), civil law. The prosecution is the ...
, Ražnatović produced a document summarizing a mortgage loan he obtained from the UDBA for his house at Ljutice Bogdana Street. He ended up receiving a six-month sentence, which he served at the Belgrade Central Prison. In the late 1980s, a football hooligan subculture had emerged in Yugoslavia and the unruly and rowdy fans of the Red Star Belgrade football team were seen as a major social problem. At the request of the Ministry of the Interior, Ražnatović took over the ''Delije'' ("Heroes") fan club of Red Star Belgrade in an attempt to impose some control on the hooligans. Ražnatović quickly became a hero to the ''Delije'' club by his ability to arrange for them to go to Western Europe whenever Red Star Belgrade played a game in a Western European city.


Yugoslav Wars


Early

Only days after the 1990 Croatian multi-party election, Ražnatović, who was the leader of the '' Delije'' ( hooligan supporters of the football club
Red Star Belgrade Fudbalski klub Crvena zvezda ( sr-cyrl, Фудбалски клуб Црвена звезда, lit=Red Star Football Club), commonly referred to as Crvena zvezda () and colloquially referred to as Red Star Belgrade in anglophone media, is a ...
), was present at the away game against Croatian side
Dinamo Zagreb Građanski nogometni klub Dinamo Zagreb (), commonly referred to as simply Dinamo Zagreb (), is a Croatian professional football club based in Zagreb. Dinamo play their home matches at Stadion Maksimir. They are the most successful club in Cr ...
at
Stadion Maksimir Maksimir Stadium (, ) is a multi-use stadium in Zagreb, Zagreb, Croatia. Named after the surrounding neighbourhood of Maksimir, it is one of the List of football stadiums in Croatia, largest stadiums in the country with a current seating capacit ...
on 13 May, a match that ended in the infamous
Dinamo–Red Star riot The Dinamo Zagreb–Red Star Belgrade riot was a football riot which took place on 13 May 1990 at Maksimir Stadium in Zagreb, SR Croatia, then part of SFR Yugoslavia, between the Bad Blue Boys (supporters of Dinamo Zagreb) and the Delije (suppo ...
. Ražnatović and the Delije, consisting of 1,500 people, were involved in a massive fight with the home team's football hooligans. On 11 October 1990, as the political situation in Yugoslavia became tense, Ražnatović created a
paramilitary A paramilitary is a military that is not a part of a country's official or legitimate armed forces. The Oxford English Dictionary traces the use of the term "paramilitary" as far back as 1934. Overview Though a paramilitary is, by definiti ...
group named the
Serb Volunteer Guard The Serb Volunteer Guard, SDG. Also known as Arkan's Tigers () or Arkan's men (). was an elite Serbian volunteer paramilitary unit founded and led by Željko Ražnatović (better known as "Arkan"). It was recognized for its superior bearing an ...
. Ražnatović was the supreme commander of the unit, which was primarily made up of members of the ''Delije'' and his personal friends. In late October 1990, Ražnatović traveled to
Knin Knin () is a city in the Šibenik-Knin County of Croatia, located in the Dalmatian hinterland near the source of the river Krka (Croatia), Krka, an important traffic junction on the rail and road routes between Zagreb and Split, Croatia, Split. ...
to meet representatives of the
SAO Krajina The Serbian Autonomous Oblast of Krajina ( sh-Latn-Cyrl, separator=" / ", Srpska autonomna oblast Krajina, Српска аутономна област Крајина) or SAO Krajina () was a self-proclaimed Serb Autonomous Region (oblast) withi ...
, a Serb break-away region that sought to remain in FR Yugoslavia, as opposed to the Croatian government that seceded. On 29 November, Croatian police arrested him at the Croatian-Bosnian border crossing
Dvor na Uni Dvor ( sr-Cyrl, Двор) is a municipality in the Banovina (region), Banovina region in central Croatia. Administratively, it belongs to the Sisak-Moslavina County and is located across the Una (Sava), Una River from Novi Grad, Republika Srpska, ...
along with local Dušan Carić and Belgraders Dušan Bandić and Zoran Stevanović. Ražnatović's entourage was sent to
Sisak Sisak (; also known by other alternative names) is a city in central Croatia, spanning the confluence of the Kupa, Sava and Odra rivers, southeast of the Croatian capital Zagreb, and is usually considered to be where the Posavina (Sava basin ...
and was charged with conspiracy to overthrow the newly formed Croatian state. Ražnatović was sentenced to twenty months in jail. He was released from Zagreb's Remetinec prison on 14 June 1991. It has been claimed that the Croatian and Serbian governments agreed on a DM1 million settlement for his release. In July 1991, Ražnatović stayed for some time at the
Cetinje monastery The Cetinje Monastery () is a monastery of the Serbian Orthodox Church in Montenegro. It is located in Cetinje and is the seat of the Metropolitanate of Montenegro. A center of historical and cultural importance, it was founded c. 1484 by Prince ...
, with Metropolitan Amfilohije Radović. His group of men, fully armed, were allowed to enter the monastery, where they served as security. Ražnatović's group traveled from Cetinje to the
Siege of Dubrovnik The siege of Dubrovnik ( sh-Latn-Cyrl, opsada Dubrovnika, опсада Дубровника) was a military engagement fought between the Yugoslav People's Army (JNA) and Croatian forces defending the city of Dubrovnik and its surroundings dur ...
. On his return from Dubrovnik, he was again a guest at Cetinje.


War

The Serb Volunteer Guard, also known as "Arkan's Tigers", was organized as an elite paramilitary force supporting the Serb armies, set up in a former military facility in Erdut. The force, led by Ražnatović and Milorad Ulemek, consisted of a core of 600 men and perhaps totaled more than 5,000 soldiers, and it was much feared by the public. Under Arkan's command the SDG massacred hundreds of people in eastern Croatia and Bosnia and Herzegovina. It saw action from mid-1991 until late 1995, and was supplied and equipped privately, by the reserves of the Serbian police force or through capturing enemy arms. When the
Croatian War of Independence The Croatian War of Independence) and (rarely) "War in Krajina" ( sr-Cyrl-Latn, Рат у Крајини, Rat u Krajini) are used. was an armed conflict fought in Croatia from 1991 to 1995 between Croats, Croat forces loyal to the Governmen ...
broke out in 1991, the SDG was active in the
Vukovar Vukovar (; sr-Cyrl, Вуковар, , ) is a city in Croatia, in the eastern Regions of Croatia, regions of Syrmia and Slavonia. It contains Croatia's largest river port, located at the confluence of the Vuka (river), Vuka and the Danube. Vukova ...
region, committing crimes against Croat and Hungarian civilians in
Dalj Dalj ( sr-Cyrl, Даљ, , , ) is a village on the Danube in eastern Croatia, near the confluence of the Drava and Danube, on the border with Serbia. It is located on the D519 (Croatia), D519 road, south of its intersection with the D213 road and t ...
, Erdut,
Tenja Tenja ( sr-Cyrl, Тења, , ) is a village in eastern Slavonia, Croatia, located just southeast of Osijek. The population is 7,376. History Croatian War of Independence During the Croatian War of Independence, Tenja was under the control of Se ...
and other areas. After the
Bosnian War The Bosnian War ( / 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. Following several earlier violent incid ...
broke out in April 1992, the unit moved between the Croatian and Bosnian fronts, engaging in multiple instances of
ethnic cleansing Ethnic cleansing is the systematic forced removal of ethnic, racial, or religious groups from a given area, with the intent of making the society ethnically homogeneous. Along with direct removal such as deportation or population transfer, it ...
by killing and forcefully deporting mostly
Bosniak The Bosniaks (, Cyrillic script, Cyrillic: Бошњаци, ; , ) are a South Slavs, South Slavic ethnic group native to the Southeast European historical region of Bosnia (region), Bosnia, today part of Bosnia and Herzegovina, and who sha ...
civilians. In Croatia, it fought in various areas in
SAO Eastern Slavonia, Baranja and Western Syrmia The Serbian Autonomous Oblast of Eastern Slavonia, Baranja and Western Syrmia ( sh-Latn-Cyrl, Srpska autonomna oblast Istočna Slavonija, Baranja i Zapadni Srem, Српска аутономна област Источна Славонија, ...
. Ražnatović, reportedly, had a dispute over military operations with Krajina leader
Milan Martić Milan Martić ( sr-Cyrl, Милан Мартић; born 18 December 1954) is a Croatian Serb politician and war criminal who served as the president of the unrecognized Republic of Serbian Krajina, a self-proclaimed state largely populated by Ser ...
. In Bosnia, the SDG notably fought in battles in and around
Zvornik Zvornik ( sr-cyrl, Зворник, ) is a city in Republika Srpska, Bosnia and Herzegovina. In 2013, it had a population of 58,856 inhabitants. Zvornik is located on the Drina River, on the eastern slopes of Majevica mountain, at the altitude of ...
,
Bijeljina Bijeljina ( sr-cyrl, Бијељина) is a city and municipality in Republika Srpska, Bosnia and Herzegovina. It is the provincial center of Semberija, a geographic region in the country's northeast. As of 2013, it has a population of 107,715 ...
and
Brčko Brčko ) is a city and the administrative seat of Brčko District, in northern Bosnia and Herzegovina. It lies on the banks of Sava river across from Croatia. As of 2013, it has a population of 39,893 inhabitants. De jure, the Brčko District b ...
, mostly against Bosniak and Bosnian Croat paramilitary groups, including killings of civilians. Ražnatović was favored by the Serbian authorities because as a gangster and a football hooligan he seemed to have no political ambitions and hence posed no threat to the regime of
Slobodan Milošević Slobodan Milošević ( sr-Cyrl, Слободан Милошевић, ; 20 August 1941 – 11 March 2006) was a Yugoslav and Serbian politician who was the President of Serbia between 1989 and 1997 and President of the Federal Republic of Yugos ...
. However, he started to show signs of wanting to move beyond organised crime, founding his own political party, the Party for Serbian Unity, in 1992. He also became the owner of the casino in the Hotel Jugoslavija along with a radio station, a shipping company and a brand of wine named Erdut after the base of the Tiger militia. The SDG served as much of a criminal organisation as a para-military group, and was involved in smuggling petrol into Serbia from Romania and Bulgaria in defiance of the United Nations sanctions imposed on Serbia in May 1992. Ražnatović's petrol smuggling brought him into conflict with Marko Milošević, the son of Slobodan, who from 1994 onwards was said to be trying to monopolise the petrol smuggling. In the summer of 1995, the Serbian state curtailed the supply of arms to the SDG, which was said to have been a punishment for competing with Marko Milošević. In late 1995, Ražnatović's troops fought in the area of
Banja Luka Banja Luka ( sr-Cyrl, Бања Лука, ) or Banjaluka ( sr-Cyrl, Бањалука, ) is the List of cities in Bosnia and Herzegovina, second largest city in Bosnia and Herzegovina and the largest city in Republika Srpska. Banja Luka is the tr ...
,
Sanski Most Sanski Most ( sr-cyrl, Сански Мост, ) is a town and municipality located in the Una-Sana Canton of the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina, an entity of Bosnia and Herzegovina. It is situated on the banks of the Sana River in northwes ...
and
Prijedor Prijedor ( sr-cyrl, Приједор, ) is a city in Republika Srpska, Bosnia and Herzegovina. As of 2013, it had a population of 80,916 inhabitants within its administrative limits. Prijedor is situated in the northwestern part of the Bosanska ...
. In October 1995, he left Sanski Most as the
Army of the Republic of Bosnia and Herzegovina The Army of the Republic of Bosnia and Herzegovina (; ; ARBiH), often referred to as Bosnian Army, was the military force of the Republic of Bosnia and Herzegovina. It was established by the government of the Republic of Bosnia and Herzegovina i ...
reclaimed the city. Ražnatović personally led most of the operations, and rewarded his most efficient officers and soldiers with ranks, medals and eventually looted goods. Several younger soldiers were rewarded for their actions in and around
Kopački Rit Kopački Rit is a nature park in eastern Croatia in the municipalities of Bilje and Kneževi Vinogradi. It is located northwest of the confluence of the Drava and the Danube, situated at the border with Serbia. It comprises many backwaters a ...
and Bijelo Brdo. Ražnatović reportedly sent one of his most trusted men, Radovan Stanišić, to Italy to start a relationship with
Camorra The Camorra (; ) is an Italian Mafia-typeMafia and Mafia-type orga ...
boss Francesco Schiavone. According to
Roberto Saviano Roberto Saviano (; born 22 September 1979) is an Italian writer, journalist, and screenwriter. In his writings, including articles and his book ''Gomorrah (book), Gomorrah'', he uses literature and investigative reporting to tell of the economic ...
, Schiavone eased arms smuggling to Serbia by stopping the Albanian mobsters' blocking of weapons routes, and helped money transfer into Serbia in the form of humanitarian aid amid the international sanctions. In exchange, the Camorra acquired companies, enterprises, shops and farms in Serbia at optimal prices. Ražnatović has been accused of kidnapping Serb refugees who had fled to Serbia from Croatia and Bosnia and Herzegovina and forcing them into conscription. After
Operation Storm Operation Storm ( sh-Latn-Cyrl, Operacija Oluja, separator=" / ", Операција Олуја) was the last major battle of the Croatian War of Independence and a major factor in the outcome of the Bosnian War. It was a decisive victory f ...
in Croatia resulted in the collapse of the Republic of Serbian Krajina and exodus of Serb refugees fleeing to Serbia, the Serbian Interior Ministry rounded up over 5,000 refugees to conscript into the SDG. Military-aged men were forcibly rounded up after arriving in Serbia by local police and then sent to detention camp in Erdut against their will and without informing their families. Once in Erdut, the refugees' heads were shaved and all valuables were confiscated. The men were then subjected to days of physical and psychological torture from the SDG guards, which included extreme physical exercises, routine beatings, and often being subjected to humiliating acts. Ražnatović had been giving speeches accusing the refugees of being cowards and traitors, blaming them for the loss of RSK. Belgrade's Humanitarian Law Center has represented over 100 people suing the state of Serbia for forced mobilisation.


Post-war fame

Ražnatović came to serve as a popular icon for both Serbs and their enemies. For some Serbs he was a patriot and
folk hero A folk hero or national hero is a type of hero – real, fictional or mythology, mythological – with their name, personality and deeds embedded in the popular consciousness of a people, mentioned frequently in Folk music, folk songs, folk tales ...
, while serving as an object of hatred and fear to Croats and Bosniaks. In the postwar period after the
Dayton Agreement The General Framework Agreement for Peace in Bosnia and Herzegovina, also known as the Dayton Agreement or the Dayton Accords ( sh-Latn-Cyrl, Dejtonski mirovni sporazum, Дејтонски мировни споразум), and colloquially kn ...
was signed, Ražnatović returned to his interests in sport and private business. The SDG was officially disbanded in April 1996, with the threat of being reactivated in case of war. In June of that year he took over a second division football team,
FK Obilić Fudbalski klub Obilić (Serbian Cyrillic: Фудбалски клуб Обилић) is a Serbian football club based in Vračar, a neighbourhood of Belgrade. It was named after medieval Serbs, Serbian hero Miloš Obilić, a legendary 14th-century ...
, which he soon turned into a top caliber club, even winning the 1997–98 FR Yugoslav League championship. According to Franklin Foer, in his book '' How Soccer Explains the World'', Ražnatović threatened players on opposing teams if they scored against Obilić. This threat was underlined by the thousands of SDG veterans that filled his team's home field, chanting threats, and on occasion pointing pistols at opposing players during matches. One player told the British football magazine ''
FourFourTwo ''FourFourTwo'' is an association football magazine published by British company Future. Issued monthly, it published its 300th edition in May 2019. It takes its name from the football formation of the same name, 4–4–2. Future acquired the ...
'' that he was locked in a garage when his team played Obilić. Europe's football governing body, the
Union of European Football Associations The Union of European Football Associations (UEFA ; ; ) is one of six continental bodies of governance in association football. It governs football, futsal and beach football in Europe and the transcontinental countries of Turkey, Azerbaijan ...
(UEFA), considered prohibiting Obilić from participation in continental competitions because of its connections to Ražnatović. In response to this, Ražnatović stepped away from the position of president and gave his seat to his wife
Svetlana Svetlana () is a common Orthodox Slavic languages, Slavic feminine given name, deriving from the East Slavic languages, East and South Slavic languages, South Slavic root ''svet'' (), meaning "light", "shining", "luminescent", "pure", "blessed", ...
. In a 2006 interview,
Dragoslav Šekularac Dragoslav Šekularac ( sr-Cyrl, Драгослав Шекуларац, ; 8 November 1937 – 5 January 2019) was a Yugoslav and Serbian professional footballer and coach. Nicknamed Šeki, he was quick and crafty with the ball, displaying creative ...
(who was coach of Obilić while Ražnatović was with the club) said claims that Ražnatović verbally and physically assaulted Obilić players were false. Ražnatović was a chairman of the Yugoslav Kickboxing Association. Many of the former members of "Arkan Tigers" are prominent figures in Serbia, maintaining close ties between each other and with Russian nationalist organisations. Jugoslav Simić and Svetozar Pejović posed with Russian
Night Wolves The Night Wolves () or Night Wolves Motorcycle Club is a Russian motorcycle club that was founded around the Moscow area in 1989. It holds an international status with at least 45 chapters world-wide. History The club began forming out of a ...
, Ceca performed for Vladimir Putin during his visit in Serbia, Srđan Golubović is a popular trance performer known as "DJ Max" and was identified by
Rolling Stone ''Rolling Stone'' is an American monthly magazine that focuses on music, politics, and popular culture. It was founded in San Francisco, California, in 1967 by Jann Wenner and the music critic Ralph J. Gleason. The magazine was first known fo ...
as the SDG soldier kicking dead bodies of a Bosniak family in
Bijeljina Bijeljina ( sr-cyrl, Бијељина) is a city and municipality in Republika Srpska, Bosnia and Herzegovina. It is the provincial center of Semberija, a geographic region in the country's northeast. As of 2013, it has a population of 107,715 ...
on a photo from 1992. Ražnatović came to take on the attributes of a ''
hajduk A hajduk (, plural of ) is a type of Irregular military, irregular infantry found in Central Europe, Central, Eastern Europe, Eastern, and parts of Southeast Europe from the late 16th to mid 19th centuries, especially from Hajdú–Bihar Count ...
'' (the term for a Serb bandit during the Ottoman empire), and he was celebrated in "militaristic nationalist circles" for his criminal-military exploits. The German political Klaus Schlichte wrote that Ražnatović was the "most military" of the various Serb para-military leaders in the Bosnian war, and that his primary motive in the war was greed as he seemed all too interested in looting. However, Schlichte noted that Ražnatović's attempts at political career and his frequent appearances to the Serb media suggest he had wider ambitions beyond greed.


Kosovo War and NATO bombing

According to chief judge Richard May from the United Kingdom, the
International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia The International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia (ICTY) was a body of the United Nations that was established to prosecute the war crimes in the Yugoslav Wars, war crimes that had been committed during the Yugoslav Wars and to tr ...
issued an indictment against Ražnatović on 30 September 1997 for war crimes of
genocide Genocide is violence that targets individuals because of their membership of a group and aims at the destruction of a people. Raphael Lemkin, who first coined the term, defined genocide as "the destruction of a nation or of an ethnic group" by ...
or
massacre A massacre is an event of killing people who are not engaged in hostilities or are defenseless. It is generally used to describe a targeted killing of civilians Glossary of French words and expressions in English#En masse, en masse by an armed ...
against the
Bosniak The Bosniaks (, Cyrillic script, Cyrillic: Бошњаци, ; , ) are a South Slavs, South Slavic ethnic group native to the Southeast European historical region of Bosnia (region), Bosnia, today part of Bosnia and Herzegovina, and who sha ...
population,
crimes against humanity Crimes against humanity are certain serious crimes committed as part of a large-scale attack against civilians. Unlike war crimes, crimes against humanity can be committed during both peace and war and against a state's own nationals as well as ...
and grave breaches of the
Geneva Conventions upright=1.15, The original document in single pages, 1864 The Geneva Conventions are international humanitarian laws consisting of four treaties and three additional protocols that establish international legal standards for humanitarian t ...
. The warrant was not made public until 31 March 1999, a week after the
NATO bombing of Yugoslavia The North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) carried out an aerial bombing campaign against the Serbia and Montenegro, Federal Republic of Yugoslavia during the Kosovo War. The air strikes lasted from 24 March 1999 to 10 June 1999. The bombing ...
had begun, as intervention in the
Kosovo War The Kosovo War (; sr-Cyrl-Latn, Косовски рат, Kosovski rat) was an armed conflict in Kosovo that lasted from 28 February 1998 until 11 June 1999. It ...
. Ražnatović's indictment was made public by the UN court's chief prosecutor
Louise Arbour Louise Arbour, (born February 10, 1947) is a Canadian lawyer, prosecutor and jurist. Arbour was the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, a former justice of the Supreme Court of Canada and the Court of Appeal for Ontario and a former Chief Pr ...
. In the week before the start of NATO bombing, as the Rambouillet talks collapsed, Ražnatović appeared at the Hyatt hotel in Belgrade, where most Western journalists were staying, and ordered all of them to leave Serbia. During the NATO bombing, Ražnatović denied the war crime charges against him in interviews he gave to foreign reporters. Ražnatović accused NATO of bombing civilians and creating refugees of all ethnicities, and stated that he would deploy his troops only in the case of a direct NATO ground invasion. After the
United States bombing of the Chinese embassy in Belgrade On May 7, 1999, during the NATO bombing of Yugoslavia (Operation Allied Force), five U.S. Joint Direct Attack Munition guided bombs hit the People's Republic of China embassy in Belgrade, Serbia, killing three Chinese journalists and outragi ...
, which killed three journalists and led to a diplomatic row between the United States and the
China China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. With population of China, a population exceeding 1.4 billion, it is the list of countries by population (United Nations), second-most populous country after ...
, ''
The Observer ''The Observer'' is a British newspaper published on Sundays. First published in 1791, it is the world's oldest Sunday newspaper. In 1993 it was acquired by Guardian Media Group Limited, and operated as a sister paper to ''The Guardian'' ...
'' and ''
Politiken ''Politiken'' is a leading Danish daily broadsheet newspaper, published by JP/Politikens Hus in Copenhagen, Denmark. It was founded in 1884 and played a role in the formation of the Danish Social Liberal Party. Since 1970 it has been indepe ...
'' newspapers claimed the building might have been targeted because the office of the Chinese
military attaché A military attaché or defence attaché (DA),Defence Attachés
''Geneva C ...
was being used by Ražnatović to communicate and transmit messages to his paramilitary group in Kosovo. As neither paper offered any proof for this claim it was largely ignored by the media. During an interview with Western journalists, while the three-month period of the NATO bombing was ongoing, Ražnatović showed a small rubber part of the F-117A downed by the Yugoslav army (one of only five NATO aircraft destroyed on 38,000 sorties), which he had taken as "a souvenir"; Yugoslav media falsely proclaimed that Ražnatović had downed the stealth fighter.


ICTY indictment and proceedings

In March 1999, the Prosecutor of the
International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia The International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia (ICTY) was a body of the United Nations that was established to prosecute the war crimes in the Yugoslav Wars, war crimes that had been committed during the Yugoslav Wars and to tr ...
(ICTY) announced that Ražnatović had been indicted by the Tribunal, although the indictment was only made public after his assassination. According to the indictment, Ražnatović was to have been prosecuted on 24 charges of
crimes against humanity Crimes against humanity are certain serious crimes committed as part of a large-scale attack against civilians. Unlike war crimes, crimes against humanity can be committed during both peace and war and against a state's own nationals as well as ...
(Art. 5 ICTY Statute), grave breaches of the
Geneva Conventions upright=1.15, The original document in single pages, 1864 The Geneva Conventions are international humanitarian laws consisting of four treaties and three additional protocols that establish international legal standards for humanitarian t ...
(Art. 2 ICTY Statute) and violations of the
laws of war The law of war is a component of international law that regulates the conditions for initiating war (''jus ad bellum'') and the conduct of hostilities (''jus in bello''). Laws of war define sovereignty and nationhood, states and territories, ...
(Art. 3 ICTY Statute), for the following acts: *Forcibly detaining approximately thirty non-Serb men and one woman, without food or water, in an inadequately ventilated boiler room of approximately in size. *Transporting twelve non-Serb men from
Sanski Most Sanski Most ( sr-cyrl, Сански Мост, ) is a town and municipality located in the Una-Sana Canton of the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina, an entity of Bosnia and Herzegovina. It is situated on the banks of the Sana River in northwes ...
to an isolated location in the village of Trnova and shooting them, where they shot and killed eleven of the men and critically wounded the twelfth. *Transporting approximately sixty-seven Bosniak men from Sanski Most, Šehovci, and Pobriježe to an isolated location in the village of Sasina, and shooting them, killing sixty-five of the captives and wounding two survivors. *Forcibly detaining approximately thirty-five Muslim Bosnian men in an inadequately ventilated room of about in size, withholding from them food and water, resulting in the deaths of two men. *The rape of a Muslim woman on a bus outside the Hotel Sanus in Sanski Most. Following Ražnatović's assassination in 2000, ICTY Prosecutor
Carla del Ponte Carla Del Ponte (born February 9, 1947) is a Swiss former Chief Prosecutor of two United Nations international criminal law tribunals. A former Swiss attorney general, she was appointed prosecutor for the International Criminal Tribunal for the f ...
said she was "confident, however, that other persons who shared responsibility with imfor his crimes will ultimately be brought to justice."


Assassination

In the late 1990s, Ražnatović became an isolated figure in Belgrade who rarely went outside without his bodyguards. Between 1995-2000, there were over 500 gangland murders in Belgrade, virtually none of which were solved by the police. A number of the gangsters killed were associates of Ražnatović, which was seen as a sign that he had lost his political protection. Together with his wife, Ražnatović virtually lived in the lounges of international hotels in Belgrade, apparently out of the hope he would not be killed in a place where so many foreign journalists were present. Ražnatović was assassinated, 15 January 2000, 17:05 GMT, in the lobby of the Hotel InterContinental in
New Belgrade New Belgrade (, ) is a Subdivisions of Belgrade, municipality of the city of Belgrade. It was a Planned community, planned city and now is the central business district of Serbia and South East Europe. Construction began in 1948 in a previously un ...
, in a location where he was surrounded by other hotel guests. The killer, Dobrosav Gavrić, a 23-year-old junior police mobile brigade member, had ties to the underworld and was on sick leave at the time. He walked up alone toward his target from behind. Ražnatović was sitting and chatting with two friends and, according to
BBC Radio BBC Radio is an operational business division and service of the British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) which has operated in the United Kingdom under the terms of a royal charter since 1927. The service provides national radio stations cove ...
, was filling out a betting slip. Gavrić waited for a few minutes, calmly walked up behind the party, and rapidly fired a succession of bullets from his CZ99 pistol. Ražnatović was hit in his left eye and became unconscious on the spot. His bodyguard Zvonko Mateović put him into a car, and rushed him to a hospital; he died on the way. According to his widow Svetlana, Ražnatović died in her arms as they were driving to the hospital. His companions Milenko Mandić, a business manager, and Dragan Garić, a police inspector, were also shot dead by Gavrić, who in turn was shot and wounded by Mateović. A female bystander was also seriously wounded in the shootout. After complicated surgery, Gavrić survived, but was disabled from the waist down and confined to a wheelchair. A memorial ceremony in Ražnatović's honour was held on 19 January 2000, with writer Branislav Crnčević,
Yugoslav Left The Yugoslav Left, also known as the Yugoslav United Left (JUL), was a political party in Serbia and the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia. At its peak, the party had 20 seats in Republic of Serbia's National Assembly following the 1997 general e ...
official Aleksandar Vulin, singers Oliver Mandić, Toni Montano, and Zoran Kalezić, along with the entire first team of
FK Obilić Fudbalski klub Obilić (Serbian Cyrillic: Фудбалски клуб Обилић) is a Serbian football club based in Vračar, a neighbourhood of Belgrade. It was named after medieval Serbs, Serbian hero Miloš Obilić, a legendary 14th-century ...
, including club director Dragoslav Šekularac, in attendance. Ražnatović was buried at the
Belgrade New Cemetery The New Cemetery ( sr-Cyrl-Latn, Ново гробље, Novo groblje) is a cemetery A cemetery, burial ground, gravesite, graveyard, or a green space called a memorial park or memorial garden, is a place where the remains of many death, ...
with military honours by his volunteers and with funeral rites on 20 January 2000. Sources dispute the number of people that attended, but most sources state between 2,000 to 10,000 people attended the funeral.


Trials

Dobrosav Gavrić pleaded not guilty but was convicted and sentenced to 19 years in prison. His accomplices received from 3 to 15 years each, after a year-long trial in 2002. However, the district court verdict was overturned by the Supreme Court because of "lack of evidence and vagueness of the first trial process". A new trial was conducted in 2006, ending on 9 October 2006 with guilty verdicts upheld for Gavrić as well as his accomplices, Milan Đuričić and Dragan Nikolić. Gavrić was sentenced to 30 years in prison, as well as Đuričić and Nikolić, for murder in complicity. Prior to carrying out his sentence, however, Gavrić obtained a passport from Bosnia and Herzegovina under the name Saša Kovačević and fled Serbia. In March 2011, he was driving a crime boss, Cyril Beeka, in Cape Town, South Africa when a gunman on a motorbike opened fire on them, killing Beeka and wounding Gavrić. Cocaine was found in the vehicle they were in, leading to Gavrić being fingerprinted and his true identity discovered. Since that time, he has been incarcerated in South Africa and fighting his extradition to Serbia where his 2006 sentence awaits him. , he is still fighting his extradition to Serbia in South African courts.


Personal life

Ražnatović fathered nine children by five different women. His eldest son Mihajlo was born in
Gothenburg Gothenburg ( ; ) is the List of urban areas in Sweden by population, second-largest city in Sweden, after the capital Stockholm, and the fifth-largest in the Nordic countries. Situated by the Kattegat on the west coast of Sweden, it is the gub ...
, in 1975, from a relationship with a Swedish woman. In 1992, 17-year-old Mihajlo decided to move to Serbia to live with his father. During this time the teenager was photographed wearing the uniform of his father's paramilitary unit during the Yugoslav Wars and according to a Swedish tabloid report the youngster participated in combat operations in
Srebrenica Srebrenica ( sr-cyrl, Сребреница, ) is a town and municipality in Republika Srpska, Bosnia and Herzegovina. It is a small mountain town, with its main industry being salt mining and a nearby spa. During the Bosnian War in 1995, Srebr ...
. Mihajlo has since lived in Belgrade where he played for the Red Star Belgrade ice-hockey club off and on between 2000 and 2009, also representing Serbia-Montenegro on the national team level between 2002 and 2004. During this time he also ran a sushi restaurant in Belgrade called Iki Bar and dated Macedonian pop singer
Karolina Gočeva Karolina Gočeva (, ; born 28 April 1980), sometimes credited as Karolina Gocheva or known only as Karolina, is a Macedonian singer. She launched her music career in 1991 with a performance at a local children's show and continued participating i ...
. He left Serbia after that. In 2013 he was in the news in Serbia again following the conclusion of a court case that had dragged on since 2005 over Ražnatović's failure to meet the repayment terms on a RSD1.1 million
car loan Car finance refers to the various financial products which allow someone to acquire a car, including car loans and leases. History Car financing started with the General Motors Acceptance Corporation circa World War 1. Car purchases The mo ...
he took out in 2002 from Komercijalna Banka. After continually failing to meet his monthly payments, the bank wanted the loan paid off in full in August 2005, and two years later took him to court. In June 2010 he was ordered to pay RSD3.3 million based upon the interest on the original loan. In the end, the verdict stated he owed the bank RSD2.9 million. In June 1994, sometime after her separation from Ražnatović, Natalija Martinović and their four children left Serbia and moved to
Athens Athens ( ) is the Capital city, capital and List of cities and towns in Greece, largest city of Greece. A significant coastal urban area in the Mediterranean, Athens is also the capital of the Attica (region), Attica region and is the southe ...
, where he bought them an apartment in the suburb of
Glyfada Glyfada (, ) is a town and a suburb in the South Athens regional unit located in the Athens Riviera along the coast of Saronic Gulf. It is situated in the southern parts of the Athens#Athens Urban Area, Athens urban area. The area stretches from ...
. After his assassination, Martinović disputed his
will Will may refer to: Common meanings * Will and testament, instructions for the disposition of one's property after death * Will (philosophy), or willpower * Will (sociology) * Will, volition (psychology) * Will, a modal verb - see Shall and will ...
, claiming that Svetlana doctored it. In May 2000, she sued Svetlana over Ražnatović's assets, including the villa at Ljutice Bogdana Street in which he and Svetlana lived, claiming it was built with funds from a bank loan Martinović and Ražnatović took out in 1985. The court eventually ruled against Martinović. The court agreed with her assertions that the villa was built with money from a 1985 bank loan taken out by her and Ražnatović, but ruled she had forfeited any rights in future division of that asset when she signed the property over to Ražnatović in 1994 before moving to Greece. In 2012, Ražnatović's son Vojin Martinović again accused Svetlana of falsifying his father's will. In response, Ražnatović's former associate Borislav Pelević said that the villa at Ljutice Bogdana Street was not mentioned in the will as he had already signed it over to his second wife. Ražnatović and Ceca have a daughter and a son. Their daughter
Anastasija Ražnatović Anastasija Gudelj (; sr-cyr, Анастасија Гудељ, ; born 25 May 1998), professionally known simply as Anastasija, is a Serbian singer and model. She is the daughter of Ceca (singer), Ceca and Arkan. Anastasija pursued her music care ...
sings on her mother's label, and publishes the songs on YouTube.


In popular culture

* In October 1992, Arkan was confronted by Roger Cook for a special edition of ITV's
The Cook Report ''The Cook Report'' was a British current affairs television programme, produced by ITV Central, Central Independent Television for ITV (TV network), ITV. It was presented by Roger Cook (journalist), Roger Cook which was broadcast from 22 July ...
. *The
History Channel History (formerly and commonly known as the History Channel) is an American pay television television broadcaster, network and the flagship channel of A&E Networks, a joint venture between Hearst Communications and the Disney General Entertainme ...
's 2003 documentary ''Targeted'' includes a part on Željko Ražnatović, ''Baby Face Psycho''. *In the 2008 Serbian film '' The Tour'', a group of Serbian actors go on a tour in war-torn Bosnia. Among other factions, they meet an unnamed paramilitary unit wearing insignia similar to those of the Serb Volunteer Guard. The unit's commander, played by
Sergej Trifunović Sergej Trifunović ( sr-cyr, Сергеј Трифуновић, ; born 2 September 1972) is a Serbian actor, comedian, singer, politician and citizen activist.
, is possibly based on Željko Ražnatović. *In the 2012 Japanese anime '' Jormungand'', one of the antagonists is Dragan Nikolaevich, commander of the Balkan Dragons. His looks and even his biography bear resounding resemblance to those of Arkan. *In the 2014 Serbian docu-drama series ''Dosije: Beogradski klanovi'', one of the episodes tells the story of Željko Ražnatović.


References


Biographies

* * * * * *


Interviews

*Interview with Jim Laurie, 23 December 1991. *Interview with local Bosnian Serb TV after takeover of Bijeljina, 1992. *Interview with RTV BK, 20 July 1997. *Interview with BBC, 1999. *Interview with ABC, 6 April 1999. *Interview with British reporter John Simpson, March 1999. *Interview during NATO bombings, 1999. *Interview with B92, April 1999.


Further reading

* * * * *Todorovic, Alex, and Kevin Whitelaw. "A mobster, a robber, a Serbian hero." U.S. News & World Report 31 January 2000.


External links


'Arkan's Paramilitaries: Tigers Who Escaped Justice'
– Balkan Insight, 8 December 2014
'Gangster's life of Serb warlord'
– BBC News, 15 January 2000

– The Guardian, 19 January 2000

– NPR, February 2001

– ''Vreme'', November 2008 {{DEFAULTSORT:Arkan 1952 births 2000 deaths People from Brežice Yugoslav criminals Slovenian criminals Serbian criminals Male criminals War criminals 20th-century criminals Serbian gangsters Murdered Serbian gangsters People murdered in Serbia Party of Serbian Unity politicians Members of the National Assembly (Serbia) Candidates for President of Serbia Serbian nationalists Serbian soldiers Serbian bank robbers Security guards Yugoslav secret police agents Yugoslav escapees Yugoslav people imprisoned abroad Prisoners and detainees of Yugoslavia People indicted by the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia A Military personnel of the Bosnian War Military personnel of the Croatian War of Independence Assassinated Serbian military personnel Assassinations in Serbia 2000 murders in Serbia Deaths by firearm in Serbia Burials at Belgrade New Cemetery Warlords