Belgrade court acquits Mladić helpers

The First Municipal Court in Belgrade has acquitted ten persons accused of hiding Hague indictee Ratko Mladic. The War Crimes Prosecution has announced that it will file an appeal. Belgrade court acquits Mladic helpers The trial chamber assessed that the defendants' guilt was not proven and that a statute of limitation applied to some criminal acts. Stanko Ristic, Sasa Badnjar, former officers Marko Lugonja and Ratko Vucetic, Tatjana Vaskovic, her mother and brother Ljiljana and Bojan Vaskovic, Blagoje Govedarica, Predrag Ristic and Borisav Ivanovic have been acquitted. Judge Dragan Garic explained that the statute of limitations for some criminal acts had expired in 2008 and 2009 and that guilt in other criminal acts had not been proven. Govedarica was sentenced to six months in prison and two years probation for illegal possession of weapons. Judge Garic pointed out that Stanko Ristic had undoubtedly been renting an appartment at Jurija Gagarina St. and paying the bills but that there was no evidence that Mladic had been living there or that Ivanovic had occasionally been his driver. The judge stressed that the trial chamber had made its decision based entirely on the law and the evidence presented during the trial. Ratko Mladic (FoNet, file) Prosecution to file appeal The prosecution can file an appeal to the Belgrade Court of Appeals 15 days upon receiving written verdict. “It's unusual for the trial chamber to decide to drop charges on the grounds of statute of limitations, especially if it thinks that the statute of limitation for certain acts of the accused expired back in 2008 and 2009 bearing in mind that a criminal proceeding was conducted by the new trial chamber president for a whole year,“ said War Crimes Prosecution Spokesman Tomo Zoric. “Regardless of the trial chamber's decision, the prosecution will file an appeal both against the acquittal and decision to drop the charges because it believes that the statute of limitations did not expire in this particular case,“ he added. Zoric pointed out that the prosecution would suggest the High Judicial Council to inspect whether the law, criminal proceedings process or the court rules of procedure had been violated in this case. The verdict was initially supposed to be delivered on November 4 but it was postponed at prosecution's request which filed motion for dismissal of the trial chamber and the president of the court for being biased. The proceeding against 10 persons, accused of helping Mladic from 2002 until 2006, was launched in Belgrade over four years ago, when 11 persons were arrested, kept in custody for eight months and later released pending trial. In the meantime, first accused Jovo Djogo, an officer in the Republic of Srpska (RS) Army under Mladic's command during the war in Bosnia-Herzegovina, passed away. “Acquittal could cause negative reactions” Labor and Social Policy Minister Rasim Ljajic has stated that today’s acquittal of ten persons accused of helping Mladic could have a negative impact on the public because Hague Tribunal Chief Prosecutor Serge Brammertz recently pointed out that it was necessary to deal with Mladic’s helpers. Ljajic, who is also a head of the National Council for Cooperation with the Hague Tribunal, told the press conference that Brammertz had also pointed that out in his report on Serbia’s cooperation with the Hague Tribunal which had recently been submitted to the UN Security Council. “It’s possible that this verdict will make someone conclude that Serbia is not cooperating with The Hague but those are courts’ decisions and we cannot and do not want to interfere with that,” he explained.

Belgrade court acquits Mladić helpers

The trial chamber assessed that the defendants' guilt was not proven and that a statute of limitation applied to some criminal acts.

Stanko Ristić, Saša Badnjar, former officers Marko Lugonja and Ratko Vučetić, Tatjana Vasković, her mother and brother Ljiljana and Bojan Vasković, Blagoje Govedarica, Predrag Ristić and Borisav Ivanović have been acquitted.

Judge Dragan Garić explained that the statute of limitations for some criminal acts had expired in 2008 and 2009 and that guilt in other criminal acts had not been proven.

Govedarica was sentenced to six months in prison and two years probation for illegal possession of weapons.

Judge Garić pointed out that Stanko Ristić had undoubtedly been renting an appartment at Jurija Gagarina St. and paying the bills but that there was no evidence that Mladić had been living there or that Ivanović had occasionally been his driver.

The judge stressed that the trial chamber had made its decision based entirely on the law and the evidence presented during the trial.

Prosecution to file appeal

The prosecution can file an appeal to the Belgrade Court of Appeals 15 days upon receiving written verdict.

“It's unusual for the trial chamber to decide to drop charges on the grounds of statute of limitations, especially if it thinks that the statute of limitation for certain acts of the accused expired back in 2008 and 2009 bearing in mind that a criminal proceeding was conducted by the new trial chamber president for a whole year,“ said War Crimes Prosecution Spokesman Tomo Zorić.

“Regardless of the trial chamber's decision, the prosecution will file an appeal both against the acquittal and decision to drop the charges because it believes that the statute of limitations did not expire in this particular case,“ he added.

Zorić pointed out that the prosecution would suggest the High Judicial Council to inspect whether the law, criminal proceedings process or the court rules of procedure had been violated in this case.

The verdict was initially supposed to be delivered on November 4 but it was postponed at prosecution's request which filed motion for dismissal of the trial chamber and the president of the court for being biased.

The proceeding against 10 persons, accused of helping Mladić from 2002 until 2006, was launched in Belgrade over four years ago, when 11 persons were arrested, kept in custody for eight months and later released pending trial.

In the meantime, first accused Jovo Đogo, an officer in the Republic of Srpska (RS) Army under Mladić's command during the war in Bosnia-Herzegovina, passed away.

“Acquittal could cause negative reactions”

Labor and Social Policy Minister Rasim Ljajić has stated that today’s acquittal of ten persons accused of helping Mladić could have a negative impact on the public because Hague Tribunal Chief Prosecutor Serge Brammertz recently pointed out that it was necessary to deal with Mladić’s helpers.

Ljajić, who is also a head of the National Council for Cooperation with the Hague Tribunal, told the press conference that Brammertz had also pointed that out in his report on Serbia’s cooperation with the Hague Tribunal which had recently been submitted to the UN Security Council.

“It’s possible that this verdict will make someone conclude that Serbia is not cooperating with The Hague but those are courts’ decisions and we cannot and do not want to interfere with that,” he explained.