Gambling baron arrested in Britain
A 55-year-old Gothenburg businessman suspected of running an extensive illegal gambling operation was arrested in England on Friday morning, Dagens Nyheter reports.
Swedish prosecutors suspect Rade Kotur of masterminding one murder and two cases of attempted murder. He is also suspected of tax fraud amounting to some 100 million kronor ($15.5 million).
Kotur was arrested on Friday at a well-to-do address in central London by the Metropolitan Police on foot of a European arrest warrant, according to Dagens Nyheter.
Chief prosecutor Thomas Ahlstrand told the newspaper they were waiting to have Kotur extradited
"According to the rules, he should be here in 40 days," he said.
Kotur's lawyer, Thomas Wilton, said his client denied all accusations against him.
Born in the former Yugoslavia, Kotur came to Sweden in the 1970s. He is believed to have left for Britain in the spring of 2003, just days after the murder in Stockholm of the father-in-law of known gang-leader Milan Sevo.
During the 1980s Kotur's gambling business was limited mainly to the Göteborg area. During the 1990s it expanded to the rest of the country and since 2000 several subsidiaries have spread to Germany, Spain, Great Britain and the former Yugoslavia, according to Dagens Nyheter.
Friday's arrest was a continuation of last week's raid on suspected illegal gambling operations, in which 400 gaming machines were confiscated and several people were arrested.
Majsan Boström
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Swedish prosecutors suspect Rade Kotur of masterminding one murder and two cases of attempted murder. He is also suspected of tax fraud amounting to some 100 million kronor ($15.5 million).
Kotur was arrested on Friday at a well-to-do address in central London by the Metropolitan Police on foot of a European arrest warrant, according to Dagens Nyheter.
Chief prosecutor Thomas Ahlstrand told the newspaper they were waiting to have Kotur extradited
"According to the rules, he should be here in 40 days," he said.
Kotur's lawyer, Thomas Wilton, said his client denied all accusations against him.
Born in the former Yugoslavia, Kotur came to Sweden in the 1970s. He is believed to have left for Britain in the spring of 2003, just days after the murder in Stockholm of the father-in-law of known gang-leader Milan Sevo.
During the 1980s Kotur's gambling business was limited mainly to the Göteborg area. During the 1990s it expanded to the rest of the country and since 2000 several subsidiaries have spread to Germany, Spain, Great Britain and the former Yugoslavia, according to Dagens Nyheter.
Friday's arrest was a continuation of last week's raid on suspected illegal gambling operations, in which 400 gaming machines were confiscated and several people were arrested.
Majsan Boström
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