A man was found dead in a luxury vehicle in a Zagreb suburb in a murder that media reports are hinting was an organised crime killing, a week after the double murder of Ivo Pukanic and Niko Franjic, and a day after 10 arrests were made in connection with the Pukanic-Franjic killing. Media reports said that the group arrested allegedly also had linked to Bulgarian organised crime murders.

Serbian website B92 reported that the man had been shot twice in the head. Suicide was not suspected, police said. Unconfirmed reports said that the victim was Adrijan Cupic, a former professional soldier.

Croatian media reported on October 31 2008 that vehicles had arrived at Zagreb county court, apparently carrying the Pukanic-Franjic murder suspects, although there was no official confirmation.

Pukanic, publisher of Croatian weekly Nacional, and Franjic, the publication's marketing director, died in a car bomb explosion in Zagreb on October 23 2008.

On October 29, Croatia's justice minister announced to parliament that special courts would be set up to fast-track such cases, witness protection would be improved, and
convicted criminals would have their property confiscated, the BBC reported.

Tackling organised crime is one of the key criteria Croatia must meet on its path towards membership in the European Union, which Zagreb hopes to join by 2010.

Reportedly, one of those arrested was Robert Matanic, 31, who returned to Croatia in May after spending more than eight months in prison in Bulgaria over a series of mafia murders. He was released because of a lack of evidence, local media reported.

Bulgarian National Television (BNT) reported that Matanic was arrested along with his cousin Luke and Amir Mefalaniu near the Croatian-Serbian border.
 
BNT said that media in Zagreb had alleged that the group of detainees were part of a Croatian criminal group, which Bulgarian authorities since 2004 had claimed to be linked to several murders of prominent representatives of the Bulgarian underworld.