Verdict against the Kecmanović family overturned; Shocking decision by the Court of Appeals in "Ribnikar" case

On the other hand, the court confirmed the acquittal part of the verdict concerning Miljana Kecmanović, while it reduced Nemanja Marinković’s sentence by three months and definitively sentenced him to one year of house arrest, the court’s website reported.

The court extended the pretrial detention of Vladimir Kecmanović, who has been in custody since his arrest on May 3, 2023, while Miljana Kecmanović is defending herself while free.

In the reasoning of the decision, it was noted that the court properly established Marinković’s guilt, but it considered that when issuing the first-instance verdict, insufficient weight had been given to the mitigating circumstances on Marinković’s side, which is why the Court of Appeals reduced his sentence to be served at his residence.

On the other hand, the Court of Appeals found that regarding Vladimir and Miljana Kecmanović, the reasons in the verdict remained unclear and contradictory in the operative part of the decision.

“In the retrial, the first-instance court will remedy the deficiencies pointed out in this ruling, correctly apply the relevant procedural provisions, and reliably and clearly establish all decisive facts necessary for determining the factual situation. By carefully assessing each piece of evidence individually and collectively in their interrelation, the court will evaluate the existence or nonexistence of each element of the criminal offenses in question, and provide clear and unequivocal reasoning for its conclusions,” the decision’s explanation stated.

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The court extended the custody of Vladimir Kecmanović, stating that the reasons for initially ordering and later prolonging his detention are still present. He is accused of training his underage son to handle firearms and of knowingly keeping guns and ammunition in a way that made them accessible to the child, which allowed the boy to obtain the weapon.

It is added that the son took the weapon to school and, by firing it—thanks to prior training—killed ten people and injured six others.

All of this indicates that there is a risk that Vladimir Kecmanović might repeat the criminal offense, as well as that the manner in which the crime was committed and the severity of its consequences have caused public disturbance, which could jeopardize the smooth and fair conduct of the criminal proceedings.

In the first-instance verdict, which has now been annulled, Vladimir Kecmanović was sentenced to a combined prison term of 14 and a half years for the crimes of neglect and abuse of a minor and a serious offense against public safety.

His wife, Miljana Kecmanović, was sentenced to three years in prison for neglect and abuse of a minor, while shooting instructor Nemanja Marinković received 15 months in prison for giving false testimony.

In addition to this criminal case, five more proceedings were conducted based on lawsuits filed by the families of the victims and the injured.

Prosecution to seek maximum sentences for the Kecmanović family

The Chief Public Prosecutor of the Higher Public Prosecutor’s Office in Belgrade, Nenad Stefanović, said he expects that the retrial of Miljana and Vladimir Kecmanović, parents of the boy who committed the mass shooting at “Vladislav Ribnikar” Elementary School on May 3, 2023, will be conducted efficiently and that the Higher Court will impose the maximum sentences the prosecution intends to pursue to the end.

“The Higher Public Prosecutor’s Office in Belgrade also expects that the retrial will be conducted efficiently and that afterward the Higher Court will again issue a guilty verdict for both defendants and impose the maximum prison sentences, which the prosecution will insist on,” Stefanović told Tanjug.

He added that the prosecution expects the Higher Court to address the shortcomings in the first verdict that were pointed out by the Court of Appeals in its decision.

The boy K.K., who at the time of the crime had not yet turned 14 and therefore cannot be held criminally responsible, carried out the mass shooting on May 3 using two of his father’s pistols, which he had taken on May 1.

On the day of the tragedy, he placed the weapons in his backpack, went to school, and during the first class killed 10 people and injured five more children and a history teacher.