BELGRADE, Serbia (AP) — The European Union on Tuesday expressed concern over reports of violence during local elections in Serbia and called on President Aleksandar Vucic's authorities to hold to account those responsible.
The EU delegation in Serbia, a candidate nation for membership in the 27-nation bloc, cited findings of international monitors who said they had witnessed violence and irregularities during Sunday's balloting.
The vote, which took place in 10 towns, was seen as a test for populist leader Vucic following more than a year of youth-led street protests that have shaken his tight grip on power.
“We regret the number of reported irregularities and incidents during the elections, the uneven playing field, and note with concern reports of acts of violence against independent observers, citizens, representatives of political parties and media workers,” the EU said in a statement.
“We call on the competent national authorities to ensure swift and transparent follow up and to hold perpetrators accountable,” the statement added.
Vucic declared victory for his right-wing populist Serbian Progressive Party in all 10 municipalities. The Serbian president led the campaign himself, seeking to reaffirm his party's dominance after the protests that first started in November 2024, triggered by a train station tragedy in the country’s north.
Election observers from the Congress of Local and Regional Authorities of the Council of Europe said on Monday that while the voting itself was in line with regulations, they were “alarmed” by the situation outside the polling stations.
Observers “saw heated arguments and the threatening presence of large groups of people, often unidentified and sometimes masked," the group said.
The Serbian government didn't immediately answer requests for comment.
Several people were injured in the clashes in at least three towns, including students and journalists, who said they were attacked by organized pro-government supporters. Vucic has accused his political opponents of stirring unrest and said his supporters were attacked.
While he formally says he wants Serbia to join the EU, Vucic has been accused of clamping down on democratic freedoms as he nourishes close relations with Russia and China.
The youth-led protests over the Novi Sad railway station canopy collapse that killed 16 people have posed the biggest challenge to Vucic's rule in over a decade. The authorities have since stepped up pressure on dissent, with hundreds of people reporting being detained by police or losing their jobs allegedly for supporting the student movement.
Separately, dozens of people blocked traffic on Tuesday outside the headquarters of the University of Belgrade in protest of a police raid. Authorities have said they were investigating the death of a student last week. Employees told local media they felt the raid was part of the ongoing pressure on the university following the student-led protests.
Both presidential and parliamentary elections are expected in Serbia late this year or next year. Support for Vucic is believed to have eroded, though mass protests have subsided in recent months.
People clash with Serbian police officers during a local election, in Crvenka, small town located in the municipality of Kula, Serbia, Sunday, March 29, 2026. (AP Photo)
NEW YORK (AP) — Federal prosecutors probing public corruption in New York have charged the leaders of a homeless shelter nonprofit with stealing $1.3 million from the taxpayer-backed organization and steering contracts worth millions more to favored vendors in exchange for bribes and kickbacks, according to an indictment unsealed Tuesday.
The charges come as investigators also probe whether City Council Member Farah Louis and her sister Debbie Louis, an aide to New York Gov. Kathy Hochul, accepted bribes related to the appropriation of city funds to the nonprofit, according to a search warrant viewed by The Associated Press.
Four people were arrested in the probe Tuesday. The sisters were not among those taken into custody.
The indictment describes multiple layers of corruption within BHRAGS Home Care Corp., a nonprofit focused on home health care, which has in recent years expanded its mission to include homeless shelters. They manage multiple emergency shelters opened in response to an influx of asylum seekers under the city's former mayor, Eric Adams.
Prosecutors said the nonprofit's executive director, Roberto Samedy, 50, and its former board chairman, Jean Ronald Tirelus, 50, embezzled from the organization — at one point pocketing $800,000 earmarked for “economic growth and affordable housing” in distressed Brooklyn neighborhoods.
The pair also received more than $200,000 in kickbacks in exchange for steering contracts worth millions of dollars to businesses controlled by Edouardo St. Fort and Miguel Jorge, the indictment said.
Tirelus, Samedy and Jorge all pleaded not guilty through their attorneys in court on Tuesday.
St. Fort, a former New York City police sergeant, was arrested in Massachusetts on Tuesday and did not appear in the courtroom. Inquiries to his attorney were not returned.
The indictment did not outline any wrongdoing by others. All four of the men arrested Tuesday were mentioned in a search warrant, signed March 19, seeking communications between BHRAGS, the Louis sisters and Edu Hermelyn,
Edu Hermelyn is the husband of state Assembly member Rodneyse Bichotte Hermelyn, who chairs the Brooklyn Democratic Party.
Messages left for Farah Louis, Debbie Louis and Edu Hermelyn were not returned.
A spokesperson for BHRAGS issued a statement saying the nonprofit has served New Yorkers for more than 50 years “with integrity and the highest ethical standards, and we take the allegations against Mr. Samedy seriously.”
It said Samedy is on administrative leave, with his duties handed off to the company’s chief operating officer, and that the company is cooperating with law enforcement.
Tirelus’ lawyer, Todd Spodek, said he “categorically disputes the charges and looks forward to clearing his name at trial.”
Tirelus and Samedy were charged with wire fraud, embezzlement, and bribery-related offenses and face up to 20 years in prison if convicted. St. Fort and Jorge were charged with federal program bribery and related charges, and face up to 10 years each.
St. Fort, who retired as a New York City police sergeant in 2023, runs Fort NYC Security, records show. Since 2023, the city has agreed to pay more than $7 million to Fort NYC Security to provide security services at homeless shelters, often as a subcontractor for BHRAGS.
New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani said the city would “definitely be looking into” existing contracts that the city has with BHRAGS.
The existence of a search warrant naming Farah and Debbie Louis doesn’t necessarily indicate that prosecutors plan to bring criminal charges against them, only that investigators persuaded a magistrate judge to allow them to dig deeper and seize evidence.
Nevertheless, the governor's office said Debbie Louis has been placed on leave, and a spokesperson for the City Council said the legislative body “takes any potential misconduct extremely seriously.”
“New Yorkers deserve confidence in their government,” the spokesperson said. “It is essential that the federal investigation proceed fairly and expeditiously to bring this matter to a resolution.”
FILE - New York Councilwoman Farah Louis speaks during a celebration ceremony for the refurbished George Floyd statue, after it was vandalized following its Juneteenth installation, July 22, 2021, in the Brooklyn borough of New York. (AP Photo/Bebeto Matthews, File)
