Milo Božović's Prison Deals: Over €12 Million Signed Off from Behind Bars — Connections to Bemax

One of the most significant contracts signed by the mayor of Budva, originally from Spuž, is with the company Carat, led by Dragan Perović—a figure with whom Mayor Božović shares both personal and business connections. In Dubovica, where Carat is engaged in infrastructure development, the two are co-owners of land and residential property

Predrag Nikolić

According to multiple sources, Božović and Perović are godfathers. In early October of last year, Dragan's brother, Radovan Perović, was arrested. The Special State Prosecutor's Office (SSPO) suspects that he, along with Bojan Ojdanić and Vjekoslav Lambulić, was involved in forming a criminal organization and in the illicit production, possession, and distribution of narcotic drugs. Their arrests were a continuation of the broader investigation already being conducted by the SSPO against Božović.

This is just one of several contracts—collectively worth over 12 million euros—that the mayor of Budva signed while in remand prison. However, the most valuable is the deal with his godfather, totaling 4,499,181 euros. The contract with the company Carat covers infrastructure works for constructing three roads within the scope of the Detailed Urban Plan (DUP) Dubovica 1. According to the agreement, the project will be financed across multiple budget years, with 400,000 euros allocated in last year's budget.

Božović and Perović are connected not only by personal ties but also by business interests, particularly in Dubovica, the location of Božović's ancestral home. There, the two are co-owners of both land and residential property. One plot, measuring over 1,000 square meters, has eight owners; Božović holds a 50% stake, while Perović owns 24 out of 480 shares. On a second parcel of 1,738 square meters, Božović again holds half, and Perović's company, Carat, owns a sixteenth—an ownership structure mirrored in a third plot of 320 square meters.

The same ownership ratio—one-half held by Božović and one-sixteenth by Carat—applies to an 824-square-meter residential property in Dubovica. According to documents reviewed by the Center for Investigative Journalism of Montenegro (CIN-CG), Carat sold several apartments within this building in February and March of last year.

In July 2023, around the same time as the Dubovica agreement, Božović and Perović signed another contract—this one for the construction of road A 75-75 in Bečići, valued at 346,813 euros. Carat, the main contractor, engaged several subcontractors for the project, including Ving (Pljevlja), La Collina (Podgorica), Geo Plus (Podgorica), and Hidromont Engineering (Podgorica).

Over the past year, Božović signed multiple public procurement contracts totaling more than 10 million euros while incarcerated in Spuž prison. This practice continued into the current year, with Božović signing public procurement agreements worth two million euros in the first two months alone.

Milo Božović was arrested on the morning of April 13, 2023. The Special State Prosecutor's Office filed an indictment against him, accusing him of organizing a criminal group and trafficking drugs. While the indictment is still pending before the High Court, the court has allowed Božović to continue signing municipal documents from prison and to lead the Municipality.

Public Tenders Made Available After Journalists' Request

On the Municipality of Budva's website, information about all contracts was previously unavailable to the public under the' Tenders and Public Procurements' section. Only after inquiries from CIN-CG at the end of February were the tenders and public procurements updated and made accessible.

Bemax is the Municipality's second major partner. Božović signed a contract with this company for one of the most significant investments—reconstructing two key streets in the city center, 22 Novembar and Mediteranska. The project involves converting these streets into boulevards and constructing a roundabout.

With permission from the High Court, Božović signed this contract while in the Investigation Prison in Spuž at the end of last year. On January 12, Miladin Mijajlović, executive director of Bemax, and Sonja Novaković, the company's authorized representative, signed the agreement. The contract is valued at nearly three million euros, specifically 2,924,681 euros. It was noted that the investment will be financed across multiple budget years, with 1,650,000 euros allocated for this year. Bemax's work in the city center is expected to be completed in time for the tourist season, with a 160-day deadline from the start of the contractor's work.

Just a week after the contract was signed, members of the Special Police Department arrested Aleksandar Aco Mijajlović, one of the recent co-owners of the company Bemax. He, along with five others, was taken into custody on suspicion of cigarette smuggling, specifically for allegedly forming a criminal organization and committing the extended criminal offense of smuggling.

One of Bemax's subcontractors on this project is BB Solar, owned by businessman Blažo Đukanović, the son of former Prime Minister and President Milo Đukanović. According to the contract, Đukanović's company is responsible for electrical engineering work. The subcontract is valued at 16.27 percent of the total project cost, approximately 488,000 euros.

Earlier this year, Božović signed a contract worth over a million euros for constructing a road in the Blizikuće settlement above Sveti Stefan. The contract, valued at 1,249,637 euros, was signed with the SBM consortium, represented by Vladimir Mirković.

Vladimir Mirković is the executive director of Asfalt-Beton Construction, based in Podgorica, which is the lead bidder on the project. The consortium also includes several other companies: Đurković from Nikšić with a 32.23% stake, Tofi from Rožaje with 6.81%, Breznamont from Nikšić with 5.48%, Hidromont from Podgorica with 4.31%, and Geotin MNE, also from Podgorica, with a 0.96% share.

In addition to earning half a million euros from the road construction project, Asfalt-Beton Gradnja secured another contract with Božović just before the New Year for the maintenance of city infrastructure, valued at 389,871 euros. The company had also been awarded a similar contract the previous year for the same amount and a separate agreement for the rehabilitation of existing roads, worth over 400,000 euros.

Asfalt-Beton Gradnja holds a 21.65% share in the previously mentioned major infrastructure project worth 4.5 million euros, led by Carat.

Their collaboration with this company continued into this year. On February 21, a new contract for land servicing works, valued at 35,829 euros, was signed.

From Carević to Božović: A Tradition of Controversial Deals

By awarding five contracts worth over two million euros to Asfalt-Beton Gradnja, Mayor Milo Božović has continued the practice established by his predecessor, Marko Carević, who is also a member of the Democratic Front.

In May 2020, the NGO MANS filed a criminal complaint against Carević with the Special State Prosecutor's Office (SSPO), alleging that he awarded road asphalting contracts to Asfalt-Beton Gradnja to benefit his own company, Carinvest, which acted as a subcontractor on million-euro projects. At the time, MANS claimed that Carević had signed 11 contracts with Asfalt-Beton Gradnja, with a total value nearing two million euros. However, in October 2020, the SSPO, under the leadership of Milivoje Katnić, dismissed the complaint.

Among the numerous contracts Božović has signed—worth more than three million euros in total—several were concluded with the Podgorica-based company Inženjer Gogić. In January of this year, Božović signed a contract with this company for the construction of the lower slab of a canal beneath a bridge structure in Bečići, including its connection to the existing canal system. The contract was valued at 47,632 euros.

In February of the previous year, Božović signed three more contracts with Inženjer Gogić. One was for constructing a street with complete infrastructure along the Slatava stream in Buljarica, valued at 1,638,757 euros. The other two were for works regulating the Bečić stream—Lot 1 worth 1,075,555 euros and Lot 2 worth 470,760 euros.

These contracts were signed on behalf of Inženjer Gogić by Zerina Idrizović, the company's executive director. According to the Central Register of Business Entities, the company's founder and majority owner is Miljan Gogić, who holds a 90 percent stake. The remaining 10 percent is owned by the Tuzi-based Koti Group, a company registered for non-specialized wholesale trade. Koti Group's founder, executive director, and authorized representative is Veljko Lakočević.

Lakočević was the majority owner of Inženjer Gogić until March 2021. A year earlier, he purchased a large glass office building in central Podgorica, located directly across from Njegošev Park, through this very company.

In December 2021, MANS published an investigation revealing that despite identifying irregularities, the Property Administration did not cancel the tender for a controversial real estate project. Instead, it signed a contract worth approximately 8.7 million euros with Koti nekretnine.

At the time of the transaction, Koti nekretnine was owned by Inženjer Gogić. In September 2019, Vladan Ivanović transferred his stake in Inženjer Gogić to Veljko Lakočević without compensation.

Vladan Ivanović also owns Master Engineering and was part of the ownership structure of Novi Volvox, a company linked to his uncle, Milan Ivanović. The Ivanović family has long been perceived as close to the Đukanović political circle.

Following the scandal surrounding the so-called "nobody's house" in Gorica, businessman Duško Knežević publicly stated:

"Everyone in Montenegro knows that the house belongs to Đukanović, even though it's officially registered under his friend Vladan Ivanović."

According to the Municipality of Budva's Public Procurement Plan as of January 31, 2023, the total projected value of public procurements for that year was 26 million euros. However, based on the contracts available, only around 15 million euros' worth of contracts for works, services, and goods were signed, indicating that the plan was not fully realized.

This year's procurement plan totals just over 19 million euros, with roughly 17 million remaining uncontracted.

After Mayor Božović's arrest, there were widespread concerns that public procurement procedures and other official matters would halt, especially since he had not appointed any deputy mayors before his detention. His resignation was publicly requested to ensure the Municipality could function. The legal uncertainty was eventually addressed by the High Court in Podgorica, which authorized Božović to continue signing official municipal documents from prison.

Meanwhile, amid ongoing legal and administrative confusion in the Municipality of Budva, the Ministry of Public Administration has announced that it has finally launched a review into the legality of the actions taken by the detained mayor, Milo Božović.