After visiting Liberland (the new micro state between Serbia and Croatia), Serbian police pull over our car and accuse us of speeding. Without any evidence of speeding, they demand 2500 Dinars in cash or 50 euros outright (a huge increased amount, obviously a bribe). Upon offering 2500 Dinars, the officer then asks for 3500 instead, a clear attempt at extracting a bribe in order to release my passport and car documents. They demand us to drive to the post office ATM and withdraw more cash to give them. By refusing to pay and refusing to sign documents written completely in Serbian, the officers who only speak Serbian try every method of extraction, eventually calling their chief over (who actually speaks English very well and was watching the entire situation). She threatened they would keep my passport for 5 days and not allow me to leave the country. Eventually we drove to the nearest exchange, got the full amount and paid the officers in order to get back on the road. We were pulled over for the total time of 1 hour and 30 minutes. Near Subotica, Serbia (8 kilometers from the Hungarian border) In the course of being stopped, we witnessed at least 5 other vehicles getting stopped by the police -- all with foreign plates. Let this be a warning to any foreigner attempting to drive through Serbia. Know your rights and refuse to sign documents you can't read. And don't give them your passport. 21. May 2015 http://yael.ca

• published: 03 Jun 2015
• views: 2146