An early morning phone call for Croatian minister Vrdoljak.
Croatia’s Office for Combating Corruption and Organized Crime (USKOK) made a bizarre mistake yesterday, when it called in for an interrogation Croatian Minister of Economy Ivan Vrdoljak. It was only after the minister arrived at the prosecution offices that it became apparent that the investigators have inadvertently confused him with his namesake, 32-year-old former footballer who now plays for Polish team Legia. Footballer Vrdoljak was allegedly due to testify about the case of Croatian football boss Zdravko Mamić who is accused of taking millions from Dinamo Zagreb Football Club accounts, reports Jutarnji List on December 17, 2015.
In the early morning, the minister received a phone call from a police officer who asked him whether he has speaking with Ivan Vrdoljak. After the minister confirmed his identity, the police officer told him that he should come to USKOK headquarters to testify in connection with a case and asked him if he was available. “So, you are in Zagreb right now, not in Poland?”, asked the police officer.
The minister, even though he was somewhat surprised by the question, decided to immediately fulfil his civic duty. In a very short time after the call, he came to the USKOK headquarters. At the entrance, he introduced himself to the duty officer and said he was invited for an interview. He passed the security control and showed his ID card. The police took away his mobile phone and put it a special locker, to be returned on his way out.
Fortunately, the minister was spotted in a corridor by the deputy director of USKOK, who instantly realized that they have called in the wrong Ivan Vrdoljak. While USKOK did not want to comment on the bizarre event, the Police Directorate confirmed the error. “There was a communication error due to a wrong phone number being given initially. Everyone immediately apologized to the minister, including the Police Director General Vlado Dominić”, the Police Directorate said.
