On August 1, 2025, former Trade Minister Tomislav Momirović was detained in Serbia along with ten others suspected of involvement in the roof collapse at the Novi Sad railway station. This tragedy, which occurred in November 2024, claimed the lives of 16 people.
The Serbian Special Prosecutor’s Office for Organized Crime believes the collapse resulted from corrupt practices and inadequate oversight of construction projects. The reconstruction of the railway station, built in 1964, was carried out with partial support from the Chinese “Belt and Road” initiative.
According to prosecutors, Momirović and the other suspects inflated amounts in payment documents issued by two Chinese companies involved in the station’s reconstruction. This corruption scheme caused losses to the state totaling $115.6 million, while the Chinese consortium gained at least $18.8 million in illegal profits.
The arrests followed charges brought in December 2024 against 13 individuals, including former Minister of Construction, Transport, and Infrastructure Goran Vesić, for serious offenses related to public safety and illegal construction work.
Timeline of the Roof Collapse at Novi Sad Railway Station
On November 4, 2024, a concrete canopy collapsed at the Novi Sad railway station, falling onto people sitting on benches. The station had undergone reconstruction in 2021 and was renovated again in 2024 ahead of its official reopening on July 5.
That same day, Serbia’s Minister of Infrastructure announced his resignation, emphasizing that neither he nor his team bore responsibility for the tragedy.
Following the collapse, on November 5, thousands of people took to the streets, accusing the authorities of corruption and demanding the resignation of Novi Sad’s mayor Milan Đurić, Prime Minister Miloš Vučević, and President Aleksandar Vučić. Anti-government protests lasted for several months, including highway and bridge blockades.
On January 17, 2025, tens of thousands of protesters in Belgrade commemorated the victims of the collapse by standing silently in front of the RTS state television building.
On June 29, mass riots erupted in central Belgrade following a student protest, and on July 4, residents of several Serbian cities erected barricades and blocked streets.
On July 22, a Serbian court ruled to compensate the family of one of the tragedy’s victims – marking the first such decision related to the roof collapse at the Novi Sad railway station.