Criminal procedure was conducted before the War Crimes Council of the Zagreb County Court against the defendant Slobodan Davidović, member of the paramilitary unit "Scorpions", charged with a war crime against civilians in 1995 in Trnovo (execution of six civilians) and a war crime against war prisoners in 1991 in Bobota. The defendant was validly sentenced and is currently serving a prison sentence in the duration of 15 years.
INDICTMENT (SUMMARY)
The indictment No. K-DO-182/05 of 8 September 2005 charged the defendant Slobodan Davidović that, on a precisely unidentified day in July 1995, in the vicinity of the village of Trnovo in Godinska bara area, the Republic of BiH, as a member of the paramilitary unit "Scorpions" commanded by Slobodan Medić, acting contrary to the rules of the international humanitarian law during an armed conflict, together with an unidentified number of unknown members of the "Scorpions" unit, after they apprehended and deprived of liberty minors Azmir Alispahić, Safet Fejzić and four other young male persons, they brought them in a truck and killed them by shooting them in the back from automatic rifles. In count 2 of the indictment Slobodan Davidović was charged that, during the night between 30 and 31 October 1991 in Bobota, in an improvised prison, as a member of the paramilitary unit "Scorpions", acting contrary to the rules of the international humanitarian law, together with an unidentified number of unknown members of the "Scorpions" paramilitary unit, he beat and insulted detained Croatian defenders.
Modification of the indictment
GENERAL DATA
Zagreb County Court
War Crimes Council: Judge Miroslav Šovanj, Council President; Judge Dušanka Zastavniković-Duplančić, Council member; Judge Marin Mrčela, Council member
Indictment number: K-DO-182/05, issued by the Zagreb County State's Attorney's Office on 8 September 2005
Prosecuting attorney: Ivan Plevko, Deputy Zagreb County State's Attorney
Criminal act: war crime against civilians (Article 120, paragraph 1 of the Basic Criminal Law of the RoC - hereinafter: the OKZ RH) and a war crime against war prisoners (Article 122 of the OKZ RH).
Defendant: Slobodan Davidović
Defence counsel: Nenad Sarta, a lawyer practising in Zagreb
Victims:
- killed: Azmir Alispahić, Safet Fejzić, an unknown young male person, an unknown young male person, an unknown young male person, an unknown young male person.
- tortured: Željko Junačko
MONITORING REPORTS
Below you will find reports from trials.
Trnovo and Bobota - reports (in Croatian)
VERDICT
President of the War Crimes Council of the Zagreb County Court, Judge Miroslav Šovanj, pronounced on 29 December 2005 a non-valid verdict in which the defendant Slobodan Davidović, member of the paramilitary unit "Scorpions", was found guilty of committing a war crime against civilians referred to in Article 120, paragraph 1 and a war crime against war prisoners referred to in Article 122 of the Basic Criminal Law of the Republic of Croatia. In relation to the first count of the indictment, the Council sentenced the defendant to 14 years in prison, while in relation to the second count of the indictment to 9 years in prison. He was pronounced a joint prison sentence in the duration of 15 years.
The Supreme Court of the Republic of Croatia upheld the verdict and thus it became final.
FINAL OPINION OF THE MONITORING TEAM
The criminal procedure lasted for three months.
The first count of the indictment was based exclusively on the video recording of execution of Bosnian civilians because none of the heard witnesses had direct information about the crime. Due to that reason, in the more precisely specified indictment, June 1995 was stated as the time when the crime was committed, although it is a well known fact that the killed civilians were victims of the Srebrenica genocide that was committed in July 1995. Before the end of that procedure, a criminal procedure was initiated before the War Crimes Council of the District Court in Belgrade against other members of the "Scorpions" unit. In order to establish all facts relating to this crime, because we are talking about the same factual and legal description of the act, it will be necessary to establish cooperation between the State Attorney's Office of the Republic of Croatia and the War Crimes Prosecution of the Republic of Serbia.
Full analysis is contained in the enclosed document.
