STA, February 15, 2018 – The police have confiscated several weapons and a small quantity of drugs in a sting in Roma settlements in eastern Slovenia on Thursday, apparently on a tip-off that the residents were dealing in weapons.
The Murska Sobota Police Department said criminal charges would be filed related to possession and trafficking in illicit weapons and drugs after the seized weapons have been properly classified.
Local media have reported the police have acted on a tip-off from residents of a Roma settlement in Dokležovje, in Beltinci municipality, who reported illicit activity in another Roma village in the same municipality.
The sting comes in the aftermath of reports of increased problems with the Roma in the area, which Beltinci Mayor Milan Kerman confirmed for the STA.
He said problems were escalating. "We need professional help. If there are investigations under way, it shows the problems are serious," he said.
Kerman said problems were being caused by Roma who have moved to the villages from Croatia, Macedonia and Kosovo.
The worsening situation was brought to the attention of Human Rights Ombudsman Vlasta Nussdorfer in autumn last year, after complaints by several non-Roma locals.
Sobotainfo.com, a local news portal, reported today that the escalating violence may be driven by a dispute between two Roma families.
There are two significant areas of Roma settlements in Slovenia, in the eastern Prekmurje region of which Beltinci is a part, and in the southern Dolenjska region.
In general, the Roma in the east are seen as well integrated and their villages have electricity, running water and sewage, and the communities are generally perceived as being unproblematic.
In contrast, many Roma villages in the south lack even the most basic infrastructure.
