Stjepan Đureković (born in Petrovaradin in 1926 - died in 1983) was a Croatian businessman who was assassinated by the Yugoslav secret police, UDBA, after emigrating from Communist Yugoslavia to West Germany.
During World War II Đureković avoided service in the Independent State of Croatia's armed forces to join the Yugoslav Partisans.[1] After the war he rose to a position within Croatia's national oil company INA.[1] After he fell out with the country's regime he emigrated to West Germany in 1982 where he became involved with the Croatian National Committee.[1] Together with Ivan Botić he published Yugoslavia in crisis, in which the two argued that Yugoslavia's large inflation rate and unemployment was resulting in the exploitation of Croatian resources.[2][3] He was assassinated by UDBA agents in 1983.[1] The assassination was code-named Operation Dunav.[4]
His remains were reburied at Zagreb's Mirogoj cemetery in 1999.[5]
Germany put out an arrest warrant on Josip Perković for his involvement in the assassination in 2005.[6] Krunoslav Prates has also been put on trial on charges relating to the crime.[7]Some Serbian sources have linked his assassination to the Serbian mafia, including later Serb warlord Željko Ražnatović "Arkan". The German court tring Prates has threatened to take action against Croatian officials who have obstructed Croatian testimony at the trial, including Croatian president Stipe Mesić.[8]
In 2008 Krunoslav Prates as sentenced to life in prison for his role in the murder.[9] In 2009, the Federal Criminal Police Office of Germany issued warrants for Zdravko Mustač, Josip Perković, Ivan Cetinić, Ivan Lasić and Boris Brnelić for their involvement in the murder as members of the UDBA.[10] In October 2009 German police arrested Luka Sekula, a Croat with Swedish citizenship, for participation in the murder.[11][12]