Former Serbian football prodigy Živko Bakić, who swapped the pitch for a life of crime as an alleged Balkan drug cartel boss, was found brutally gunned down in a wooded area
The gunned down body of a former football star turned alleged drug kingpin, was found dead in a wooded area close to his home. The man had been reportedly ambushed during his permitted daily walk while under house arrest.
Živko Bakić’s body was found dead last week on January 16. The late footballer was likely murdered in the Trešnja settlement near Sopot, on the outskirts of Belgrade, Serbia.
Once a rising star on the pitch, Bakić’s life took a dramatic turn as he became the suspected leader of a Balkan cartel. The gang was reportedly involved in smuggling hundreds of kilos of cocaine across Europe.
His shocking assassination, carried out during a permitted walk while he wore an electronic tag, has sent shockwaves through both the sporting and criminal worlds. Police have since arrested a suspect in connection with the killing, as tributes and controversy continue to swirl around the fallen ex-footballer.
Bakić met a violent end earlier this month when he was reportedly ambushed and shot dead during his daily permitted walk. The ex-athlete was intercepted in a wooded area and shot multiple times, including twice in the head.
Police swiftly launched a murder investigation and, just 10 days later, arrested 35-year-old Aleksandar D. believed to be the gunman. Detectives reportedly suspected that Bakić’s killers had carefully tracked his strict house-arrest routine.
Aleksandar D. was apprehended in a safe house, according to sources, Serbian news outlet Blic reported today (January 26). Bakić, who was also known to many as “Žića”, was once tipped for football stardom in Serbia.
He played as a right-back for youth sides at Red Star Belgrade and made his senior debut for FK Rad at just 17. He also turned out for FK Zemun, FK Hajduk Kula, and FK Zeta in the early 2000s, earning a reputation as a brave player and loyal supporter.
Tributes consequently echoed by FK Rad after his disturbing death. After hanging up his boots in 2007, Bakić’s life took a dramatic turn as he became embroiled in the world of organised crime.
Authorities identified him as a key figure in a major Balkan drug cartel, and he was the lead defendant in a notorious case involving the smuggling of 324 kilograms of cocaine from South America to Europe.
The haul was eventually seized in Thessaloniki, Greece, in 2021.
Bakić was also known to be a close associate of infamous crime boss Zoran Jakšić, who died in a Peruvian prison in 2025. His criminal career saw him serve time in a Spanish high-security jail in 2014.
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