Adnan Šerak has been considered one of the most well-known and most controversial names in the Sarajevo criminal underworld for decades. Behind him are numerous convictions, conflicts with the law, prison incidents and a reputation of a man who, according to stories of former prisoners, "is feared by both inmates and guards".

Šerak was convicted in Sarajevo for serious crimes, including attempted murder, as well as the killing of a prisoner. Over the years, he repeatedly came into the focus of the public due to violent incidents, escapes and conflicts within the prison system.

At the end of 2018, the Cantonal Court in Sarajevo approved a one-month break from serving his sentence, but after that period expired, he did not return to prison. After more than a month in hiding, he was found and arrested in Sarajevo, after which he was returned behind bars.

This was not the first such case. Already in 2012, he was also released on a break from serving his sentence, during which he was wounded in a gunfight. He was then on the run for more than two months before being returned to prison, with his out-of-prison privileges revoked.

However, besides police records and court proceedings, Adnan Šerak has been followed for years by an almost mythical reputation among part of the prison population in KPZ Zenica.

"Absolute Domination"

Former inmate Hidajet Hankić, known as Hido, spoke about Šerak as a man who had almost absolute domination among prisoners.

"Šerak is the biggest tough in the Zenica prison. You can say whatever you want, but he is currently the strongest. The guards tremble from him. The guy has guts."

Hankić claimed that Šerak physically assaulted even prison guards.

"He grabs a guard by the throat and strangles him. They can't do anything to him."

According to his words, Šerak had a special relationship with prisoners.

"He respects older convicts and helps them, but those thugs who are on the street and come to prison, he maltreats them the most."

Similar claims were made by other former prisoners, such as Elvedin Zemanić, who described the atmosphere of fear that allegedly prevailed when Šerak would appear.

"Everyone was afraid of him, their legs go numb when Ado comes. In the morning when he brushes his teeth, one guards his toothbrush, another the toothpaste, a third the towel."

Prisoner Testimonies

One of the former convicts claimed that Šerak had almost the status of "prison boss".

"When they take him to court, all the gates close, doors, a bunch of police around him. They can't come near him."

However, parallel to these stories, his opponents from the criminal underworld often tried to destroy that image. Thus, Sarajevo criminal Mirza Hatić publicly claimed that he beat Šerak while the latter was on the run and while police were searching for him on suspicion of unlawful deprivation of liberty and assault.

The story of Adnan Šerak therefore today transcends ordinary crime reporting. It has become part of the urban mythology of the Sarajevo underworld — a mixture of brutal crime, prison hierarchy, fear and Balkan fascination with "dangerous guys".

And while some see in him a brutal criminal, others present him as a "street authority" who built a reputation of force within the prison system. What is certain is that Adnan Šerak remained one of the most well-known names in the BiH underworld for years.