Ex-mayor rejects war crimes charges

A judge of the Sabac District Court in western Serbia questioned on Monday Bozidar Vucurevic, a former mayor of Trebinje, in Bosnia-Herzegovina. He was detained last week on a Croatian war crimes warrant, and his extradition has been sought by that country. Ex-mayor rejects war crimes charges Vucurevic rejected all allegations made against him by the Dubrovnik County Prosecutor's Office. Vucurevic is wanted in Croatia for war crimes against civilians in the country's coastal city of Dubrovnik, and the man's defense proposed he be released from extradition custody. During the two-hour hearing, conducted in Sabac's prison on Monday, Vucurevic denied the charges made against him by the Dubrovnik County Prosecutor's Office in 1993, his lawyer Vladimir Bozovic told Tanjug. “He (Vucurevic) reminded the Sabac District Court that he had already given his statement concerning the events in Dubrovnik before The Hague Tribunal in 2003, which found that there was no ground for investigation, let alone for raising charges against him,” the lawyer said. Vucurevic's lawyer noted that the defense believed there were no grounds for Vucurevic's extradition and expressed the hope that Serbia's judicial bodies would reject Croatia's request. Bozovic said that the defense proposed to the court to revoke Vucurevic's detention because he was an old and sick man, noting that the defense had sought from the authorities of Bosnia-Herzegovina, the country of Vucurevic's citizenship, and from the Serb republic (RS), that he be released pending trial. Vucurevic was arrested at the Karakaj border crossing between Serbia and Bosnia on April 4 based on a Croatian warrant. The Sabac District Court placed him in 18-day extradition custody the same day.

Ex-mayor rejects war crimes charges

Vučurević rejected all allegations made against him by the Dubrovnik County Prosecutor's Office.

Vučurević is wanted in Croatia for war crimes against civilians in the country's coastal city of Dubrovnik, and the man's defense proposed he be released from extradition custody.

During the two-hour hearing, conducted in Šabac's prison on Monday, Vučurević denied the charges made against him by the Dubrovnik County Prosecutor's Office in 1993, his lawyer Vladimir Božović told Tanjug.

“He (Vučurević) reminded the Šabac District Court that he had already given his statement concerning the events in Dubrovnik before The Hague Tribunal in 2003, which found that there was no ground for investigation, let alone for raising charges against him,” the lawyer said.

Vučurević's lawyer noted that the defense believed there were no grounds for Vučurević's extradition and expressed the hope that Serbia's judicial bodies would reject Croatia's request.

Božović said that the defense proposed to the court to revoke Vučurević's detention because he was an old and sick man, noting that the defense had sought from the authorities of Bosnia-Herzegovina, the country of Vučurević's citizenship, and from the Serb republic (RS), that he be released pending trial.

Vučurević was arrested at the Karakaj border crossing between Serbia and Bosnia on April 4 based on a Croatian warrant.

The Šabac District Court placed him in 18-day extradition custody the same day.