The Mostar city police expected a possible bank robbery on Tuesday, considering it was time for the carnival and the payment of pensions, Police Chief, Dragan Jelonjic said, adding that the apprehension of the three gunmen who attempted to rob the ‘Privredna Banka’ in Mostar ended a series of crimes that took place in recent months in Bosnia’s southern region of Herzegovina.
“The two out of three gunmen we apprehended are from Mostar, while the third one is from neighbouring Croatia and they were all previously known to the police,” Jelonjic said.
Related news
Three masked gunmen attempted to use the carnival in Bosnia’s southern city of Mostar as cover and to rob a bank on the day when pensions were paid to beneficiaries. After entering the ‘Privredna Banka,’ some of the locals informed the police who swiftly surrounded the building, but the short stand-off between the two sides created a hostage situation.
Jelonjic said the whole situation was resolved quickly because the police already had some information and was able to focus on only several most probable robbery targets. With the help of Mostar residents who phoned the police, they were able to respond instantly and defuse the situation without casualties.
By solving this case, he said the police would probably solve at least four other similar crimes.
“These are very serious and organised criminals. Their crimes are by no way naive or harmless. Luckily, none of the seven hostages or the gunmen was hurt. We tried to resolve the situation without the use of firearms, and we succeeded thanks to the negotiators that were with us,” Jelonjic noted.
The Minister of Interior of the Herzegovina Neretva Canton, where Mostar is situated, congratulated the Mostar Police Department and officers that were engaged in the case, saying the situation could have easily escalated but thanks to the wise negotiating team and other competent people, it was quickly resolved.
