The unpacking of encrypted applications, the most famous of which are Sky and ANOM, has so far resulted in the confiscation of a real empire in BiH from those who were the target of police actions, including the freezing of at least 109 propertiesthey write Independent newspaper.
In question are buildings, apartments, houses, business premises, land, and garages, worth several million, and the list also includes two expensive machines for carrying out construction works.
At least 93 vehicles were confiscated, and some of them were valued at more than 200,000 euros, as well as five expensive wristwatches worth around 100,000 KM, and two watches worth 615,000 euros.
Huge amounts of drugs
At least 1,670 kg of marijuana were seized by the investigators, but the list also includes the seizure of cash and the blocking of cryptocurrency accounts in the amount of around 6,000,000 KM.
Security expert Safet Mušić said that the disclosure of communications from encrypted platforms such as Sky ECC and ANOM represents one of the biggest blows to organized crime in the region in recent years, as investigators gained insight into the complete structure of criminal networks – from drug and weapon smuggling to money laundering and corruption.
“It is especially important that these investigations end with quality judicial proceedings and final verdicts, because without that there is a danger that criminal groups will reorganize and continue their activities,” Mušić told “Nezavisne novine”.
False identities
Modern organized crime, he added, today operates transnationally, through networks connected in several countries, with the use of encrypted communications, false identities, front companies and international financial flows.
“Balkan criminal groups have long been no longer a local problem, but part of wider international cartels connected to the markets of Western Europe and Latin America. That’s why confiscation of property, money and real estate are just as important as the arrests themselves, because criminal organizations are hit the hardest by attacks on their profits and financial power,” Mušić emphasized.
Shady actions
Journalist Nebojša Tomašević said that, after unpacking, that is, revealing the messages in the Sky and ANOM applications, we saw that there is no crime without government or at least connection with it.
“In those messages, it was revealed that police officers, investigators, lawyers… and who knows who else were involved in the shady activities, because surely not everything was made public. The claim that the applications themselves were allegedly created by experts from the American Bureau of Investigation FBI, speaks in favor of the fact that every government knows about crime, only tolerates it for some reason while it ‘grazes.’ Tomasevic.
According to him, when it comes to our premises, we should not be surprised that among those who are up to their elbows in crime are members of law enforcement agencies.
“With us, nepotism, slander at every corner, is a normal state, and for those who become important and rich, even if in a criminal way, they say ‘he managed,’” Tomašević told Nezavisne novine.
Refreshed the data
The Prosecutor’s Office of BiH recently updated the data on the total number of indictments filed and confirmed, final verdicts based on plea agreements and verdicts in regular court proceedings, the number of suspects and accused persons included in the cases.
“Until now, indictments have been brought in 20 cases involving 105 accused persons. After the materials received, 35 new cases were formed last year and this year (12 in 2025 and 23 in 2026). Prosecutor’s decisions are also expected in 2026 in previously initiated investigations,” said the BiH Prosecutor’s Office.
As of the end of March, indictments were brought against 105 people in the Sky and ANOM cases, and 18 defendants in six cases pleaded guilty.
“In the regular court proceedings, the first final judgment was passed with evidence from encrypted applications and four first-instance verdicts,” stated the Prosecutor’s Office of BiH.
From 2021 to the end of 2025, the team of prosecutors in charge of Sky cases, in cooperation with police and security agencies across BiH, conducted 33 operations, which resulted in the arrest or detention of at least 175 suspects across BiH.
More than 34 years in prison
“The total duration of the prison sentences imposed so far is 34 years and four months. The prison sentences are in the range of one to five years of imprisonment,” said the BiH Prosecutor’s Office.
Out of a total of 30 employees of the police and law enforcement agencies included in the investigation, among the 10 accused so far, there are police officers of the BiH Border Police, the State Investigation and Protection Agency (SIPA), the MUP of the Republika Srpska, the MUP of the Herzegovina-Neretva Canton, the MUP of the Sarajevo Canton, a former adviser in the Ministry of Security of BH, and two lawyers.
What are the Sky and ANOM apps?
These are encrypted communication applications used by criminal groups for secret communication.
How many people have been charged in Bosnia and Herzegovina?
According to the data of the Prosecutor’s Office of Bosnia and Herzegovina, indictments were brought against 105 persons.
What was confiscated?
Real estate, luxury vehicles, drugs, cash, watches and cryptocurrency assets.
