Editing Sretko Kalinić

{{Villain Infobox
|Image = Sretko Kalinić.jpeg
|fullname = Sretko Kalinić
|alias = Zver ("Beast")<br>Beli ("The White")
|origin = Zadar, Croatia
|occupation = Gangster<br>Contract killer
|skills = Sadism
|goals = Eliminate opponents of the Zemun Clan
|crimes = [[War crimes]]<br>[[Murder]]<br>[[Terrorism]]<br>[[Torture]]<br>[[Kidnapping]]<br>Racketeering
|type of villain = Sadistic Gangster}}
'''Sretko Kalinić''' (born 25 February 1974) is a Croatian-Serb gangster and murderer known for his participation in the murder of Serbian Prime Minister Zoran Đinđić. He has admitted to participating in the murders of at least 17 people.

==Biography==
Kalinić was born in Croatia to a Serbian family. During the [[Croatian War of Independence]] he fought for a pro-Serbian paramilitary unit known as the Red Berets under the command of [[Dragan Vasiljković]]. This unit was linked to numerous war crimes, including the torture and murder of Croat prisoners.

After the war, Kalinić joined the [[Zemun Clan]] crime syndicate as a hitman. Former members of the Zemun Clan claimed Kalinić, nicknamed "The Beast", was the syndicate's most brutal hitman and enjoyed torturing his victims by breaking their bones with a hammer and burning them with acid, disposing of their bodies in meat grinders. He was "the favourite murderer" of Zemun Clan leader [[Dušan Spasojević]] and has been credited with up to 20 murders (his personally claimed kill count is 17), mostly witnesses against the Zemun Clan. He was also involved in the Zemun Clan's businesses of kidnapping and racketeering.

In March 2003, Serbian Prime Minister Zoran Đinđić was assassinated by a sniper. An investigation soon concluded that the assassination had been committed by [[Milorad Ulemek]]'s [[Special Operations Unit]] at the behest of the Zemun Clan. Twelve alleged conspirators were indicted, including Kalinić. The Belgrade Special Court for Organised Crime eventually found all twelve men guilty in May 2007, but by this time Kalinić and several others had gone on the run. Kalinić was sentenced ''in absentia'' to 40 years in prison for murder, terrorism and kidnapping.

In June 2010 Kalinić was confronted in Zagreb by fellow conspirator [[Miloš Simović]], who shot Kalinić in the hope of escaping while police were focussing on his comrade. Simović was arrested and Kalinić was admitted to hospital, where he was questioned by the police. He confessed involvement in multiple contract killings, including the murders of two witnesses against him in the Đinđić case, and gave testimony against several of his old colleagues from the Zemun Clan. He and Simović both blamed each other for the murder of minor gangster Cvetko Simić, whose decapitated body had recently been found in a lake near Zagreb; ultimately neither were charged in the death.

Despite confessing to multiple crimes and being under a prison sentence in Serbia Kalinić could not be extradited because he holds dual Croat-Serb citizenship and Croatian law at the time forbid the extradition of citizens. At the request of the Serbian government, the Croatian assembly began working on constitutional amendments to allow Kalinić's extradition. These were approved in August 2010 and Kalinić was returned to Serbia to serve his sentence. 
[[Category:List]]
[[Category:Modern Villains]]
[[Category:Living Villains]]
[[Category:Male]]
[[Category:Serial Killer]]
[[Category:Imprisoned]]
[[Category:Villains of Yugoslav Wars]]
[[Category:Government support]]
[[Category:Terrorists]]
[[Category:Gangsters]]
[[Category:Mastermind]]
[[Category:Conspirators]]
[[Category:Cowards]]
[[Category:Assassins]]
[[Category:Serbia]]
[[Category:Croatia]]
[[Category:Sadists]]
[[Category:Torturer]]
[[Category:Kidnapper]]
[[Category:Traitor]]
[[Category:War Criminal]]
[[Category:Military]]
[[Category:Barbarians]]
[[Category:Fugitives]]
[[Category:Misogynists]]
[[Category:Xenophobes]]
[[Category:Anti-LGBT]]
[[Category:Anti-Religious]]