Serbian prosecutor probing Trump Tower in Belgrade targeted with spyware

Serbian prosecutor Rade Bajić, investigating corruption linked to a Trump commercial development in Belgrade, was reportedly targeted with Israeli-developed Pegasus spyware after exposing political interference and power abuses. This follows a growing spyware scandal encompassing Serbia's political opposition, civil society, and institutions, uncovered by Toronto University's Citizen Lab and the SHARE Foundation. Bajić received an Apple Threat Notification iMessage on August 13, indicating the spyware infection.

The controversy surrounds the planned redevelopment of the former Yugoslav military headquarters in Belgrade as a luxury Trump Tower, associated with Jared Kushner, President Donald Trump's son-in-law. Allegations of political interference and irregularities over the removal of the site's protected heritage status have fueled scrutiny.

Since September, 14 individuals in Serbia, including student activists and opposition figures, have reported receiving warnings of potential spyware targeting. Citizen Lab confirmed at least one Pegasus infection in Serbia. Policy advisor Andrijana Ristić of SHARE Foundation noted the escalation in spyware surveillance from civil society and journalists to politicians and university representatives, driven by perceived impunity and state inaction despite criminal complaints being filed.

Vladan Đokić, rector of the University of Belgrade and a prominent figure in Serbia's protest movement, also fell victim to the surveillance. Đokić refused to cooperate with a government crackdown on student demonstrators, leading to a police raid on his university office in March, where computers and servers were reportedly seized. He had been a potential leader of the student-backed electoral list for the upcoming Oct. 25 parliamentary snap elections.

The perpetrators behind the Pegasus attacks on Bajić and Đokić remain unknown. John Scott-Railton, a senior researcher at Citizen Lab, emphasized that Pegasus is a technology intended for repression. "NSO has spent a decade claiming to turn over a new leaf each time an abuse surfaces. But there is no hiding the truth: Pegasus is a technology for repression," he stated.