Original article (in Montenegrin) was published on 13/1/2025; Author: Darvin Murić
The mass murder in Cetinje, one of the greatest tragedies in Montenegro’s recent history, was used by some media outlets to spread hate speech, nationalism, and disinformation.
Instead of focusing on the facts—of which there are more than enough in such cases, clearly showing that Aco Martinovic killed 13 innocent fellow citizens—certain media outlets attempted to manipulate the narrative into nationalistic waters, misleading their audience in the process.
The Alo.rs portal published an article and a video showing a group of people singing a song by Marko Perkovic Thompson, accompanied by the claim that the video featured the Cetinje shooter.
“THE MONSTER FROM CETINJE CHEERED TO THOMPSON’S USTASHA SONGS, THEN CALLED FOR THE MURDER OF SERBS. ‘Our hand will reach you even in Serbia,’ SCREAMED THE MADMAN,” Alo published.
“A video surfaced on social media showing Aco Martinovic (45) with two other people, inciting hatred. To make matters worse, the video allegedly also features his sister, whom he later killed,” Alo claimed.
The same video and claims were shared by certain social media users. The portal Srpska Info also published the same information but later removed the article.
Although police and multiple media outlets had already published photos of Aco Martinovic, and despite it being evident from even the most basic comparison that none of the individuals in the video resembled the mass shooter from Cetinje, Alo insisted that the video showed Martinovic “singing and celebrating with two other people just before the massacre.”
Aco Martinović
The Raskrinkavanje editorial team contacted the Montenegrin Police Directorate to inquire whether Martinovic appeared in the video. The response was negative.
“The individual is not A.M.,” the police stated, adding that the other people in the video are known to them.
Additionally, multiple people from Cetinje, including the Vice President of the Cetinje Local Parliament, Mirko Stanic, confirmed to Raskrinkavanje that the person in the video is not Martinovic. The Raskrinkavanje editorial team knows the identities of the individuals in the video but has decided not to disclose them, as it was deemed not in the public interest.
Since it is clear and officially confirmed that Martinovic does not appear in the video, the article published by Alo and the associated Facebook posts released at a time when the entire country was in shock are rated as fake news.
The “Fake news” rating is given to an original media report (completely produced by the media that published it) that contains factually incorrect claims or information. Content that is rated as fake news can be reliably determined to have been created and disseminated with the intent to misinform the public, that is, to present a completely false claim as fact.
