Croatian police authorities have arrested 12 people as part of investigations into a corruption scandal of financially troubled shipbuilder Uljanik.
According to local reports, the 12 people, including former president of Uljanik Gianni Rossanda and his predecessor Anton Brajkovic, are suspected of causing more than HRK1.2bn ($182m) of financial damages to the company.
The country’s Ministry of the Interior said the police started investigations into Uljanik in September last year.
Uljanik, which controls the Uljanik shipyard and the 3. Maj shipyard, is on the verge of bankruptcy. The shipbuilder has suffered from the termination of several ship construction contracts while its employees have been on strike due to unpaid wages.
Last week, Croatia’s ruling coalition failed to decide if the shipyard should enter restructuring or file for bankruptcy. Last year, Croatian shipyard Brodosplit in partnership with Italy’s Fincantieri Group, submitted their interest to take over Uljanik.