Starčević Calls for Prison and Confiscation of Property to the Ninth Generation
Former Gospić mayor says responsibility lies not with local authorities, while current mayor accuses him of meetings with businessman Josip Šincek in Ogulin.
Former Gospić mayor says responsibility lies not with local authorities, while current mayor accuses him of meetings with businessman Josip Šincek in Ogulin.
Accusations by Darko Milinović, the mayor of Gospić, against his predecessor Karlo Starčević culminated in a claim published on the front page of Jutarnji list that Starčević met businessman Josip Šincek at a gas station near Ogulin at night. This information directly places him at the center of the waste-related environmental scandal shaking Croatia, with Milinović having publicly leveled a series of serious accusations against his predecessor over the past ten years.
It is particularly telling that Starčević resigned from the mayoral position after seven years, shortly after EUROPOL and USKOK exposed the waste scandal. Ahead of the early mayoral elections in Gospić, he publicly endorsed Milinović.
In his address to N1 television a few days ago, Starčević asserted that the City of Gospić lacks the authority to issue waste disposal permits, especially for hazardous waste. He attributed this responsibility to the Lika-Senj County, indirectly pointing the finger at Milinović, who was at the time at the helm of the county.
"Neither my predecessor Petar Krmpotić, nor I, nor my successor Darko Milinović are tasked with or can issue permits for waste disposal, especially hazardous waste," said Starčević.
Starčević claims he met Šincek in early 2021, when he was presented with a project for producing protective barriers, windbreaks, and noise barriers. On that occasion, he toured the former PPK Velebit site and found only ground plastic, presented to him as raw material for production.
"There was nothing else in terms of waste at that time, in 2021, not a trace in Gospić. So, that happened later," he said.
Regarding claims by some residents that waste trucks began arriving as early as 2019, he responded that, to his knowledge, Šincek was not yet the owner of the site at that time. He also denies that anyone reported suspicious activities to him.
"All those who say they reported to me, I must say they are blatantly lying," he stated.
He allows for the possibility that someone contacted the City or his then-deputy, but emphasizes that the information never reached him personally.
Starčević is adamant that he never noticed the trucks bringing in waste.
"Never. I did not see those trucks. I can swear before God, before man, and before the DORH. Had I seen them, I would have reacted and certainly prevented it," he said.
He stressed that in the case of concrete knowledge, municipal inspectors, police, and other competent services should have intervened.
"If public services are not keeping up, then we must ask ourselves what kind of desolate state we are in where institutions do not function at all," he added.
His stance is that the main responsibility does not lie at the local level but within the state system.
Starčević directly called out Andrija Mikulić, the first man who should protect the legal order of the Republic of Croatia.
"We see that the first man who should protect the legal order of the Republic of Croatia was an accomplice in this crime, Mr. Andrija Mikulić," said Starčević.
At the same time, he expressed belief that part of the events was organized without the knowledge of Prime Minister Andrej Plenković.
"I am even convinced that a large part of this happened behind Mr. Plenković's back, that he had no idea or knowledge of it," he said.
Starčević believes that establishing criminal responsibility is more important than the remediation of the landfill itself.
"Whether it will be remediated or not, that is a secondary matter at this point. If we do not lock up those people, those perpetrators who did this, if we do not confiscate their property to the ninth generation and do not send them to forced labor, this will repeat in the next three to five years," Starčević stated.
Just a few days after these statements, Darko Milinović directly linked him to the scandal, claiming that Starčević met with Šincek at night in Ogulin.
