SARAJEVO
Bosnia and Herzegovina (AA) - The minister of agriculture and trade minister are among 14 members of a multi-ethnic political party detained by the State Investigation and Protection Agency (SIPA) on tax evasion charges in the meat industdry.
The Bosnian prosecutor's office confirmed Wednesday that Minister of Agriculture Jerko Ivankovic Lijanovic and Trade Minister Milorad Bahilj were arrested Wednesday in an operation in several cities codenamed "Meat"- one of the largest against organized crime and tax evasion the country has known.
Both Lijanovic and Bahilj are members of Narodne stranke Radom za boljitak (the People's Party for Work and Betterment).
Firms engaged in the import, production and processing of meat and associated products in the country were raided by State Investigation and Protection Agency (SIPA) officers.
The suspects are under investigation for criminal offenses in conjunction with tax evasion or fraud, and money laundering.
According to SIPA, the agriculture minister's brother, Mladen Ivankovic, is also among the detained suspects.
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