Specialists from Austria’s Federal Criminal Police Office (BK) have uncovered a failed assassination plot in Vienna involving the Balkan Kavac clan, which was supposed to be carried out back in February 2020. The plan, which reads like a Hollywood script, allegedly involved a bomb and Colombian contract killers. However, a series of coincidences foiled the plan.
A trial against one of the accused is set to begin on Tuesday at the Vienna Regional Court. The man faces charges of attempted incitement to murder and participation in attempted murder. He is accused of helping plan the attack, conducting surveillance, and passing on information about the appearance and clothing of the two intended victims to the hired killers. According to the indictment, the assassination attempt failed due to inaccurate location information, poor communication, and other factors.
In April 2021, as part of “Operation Achilles,” Austrian investigators gained access to millions of encrypted messages from organized criminal networks using crypto-messaging services. These included messages about a planned double murder in Vienna.
The Backstory: Revenge for a Killing
The two intended victims, a 47-year-old Serb and a 56-year-old Montenegrin, both affiliated with the Kavac clan, had been marked for death in retaliation for the 2018 killing of a Serbian man outside the well-known Viennese restaurant Figlmüller. “A decision was made: ‘Something must be done,’” said Daniel Lichtenegger from the Federal Criminal Police Office. The plan was either to kill the targets with a bomb or, if that failed, to use Colombian hitmen in Vienna.
The Kavac and Skaljari clans have been bitter enemies since a 200-kilogram drug shipment went missing in Spain in 2014. Their feud has already claimed around 80 lives across Europe. Both clans originate from towns near Kotor, Montenegro.
Bomb Malfunction Saves First Target
Investigators say 11 Skaljari members were involved in planning the attack, including a 29-year-old Montenegrin now on trial in Vienna. He allegedly surveilled the targets and smuggled in the Colombian assassins.
The suspects created a bomb targeting the Serbian man. However, the device failed due to amateur construction and reliance on instructions sent via chat from someone in the Western Balkans. On February 22, 2020, the bomb failed to detonate, and the target left his bar in Vienna’s Ottakring district unharmed. Dieter Csefan from the Federal Criminal Police warned that the blast could have devastated half of Koppstraße if it had gone off.
Second Attempt Fails Due to Language Barrier
After the failed bombing, the suspects switched to Plan B. Seventeen days later, the 29-year-old located the target again. But the Colombian killers didn’t speak Serbo-Croatian, requiring a translator based in Ecuador. Miscommunication again prevented the attack from being carried out.
In the weeks following, the plot’s organizers returned to Montenegro. The two main planners were abducted, tortured, and killed in Turkey and Montenegro later in 2020.
Arrests and Renewed Calls for Surveillance Powers
The 29-year-old accused was arrested at the Bosnia-Austria border and has been in custody in Austria since April 15, 2024. One of the Colombian killers died of pesticide poisoning in Colombia in August 2023. The operational leader was arrested in February 2024 in Bar, Montenegro, and is wanted in Austria.
BK director Andreas Holzer used the case to call again for stronger surveillance powers for the police, particularly access to encrypted messenger apps. He stressed that not just state security, but also criminal investigators need such tools. “Austria remains a Gaulish village without a magic potion,” Holzer said, comparing the country’s limited surveillance capabilities to other nations.
