GENERAL DATA

Osijek District Court

Case No: K-60/93

War Crimes Council (judges' panel): judge Ante Budić, Council President; judge Terezija Lulić, Council member; lay judges Inka Alerić, Romana Tomašević and Nikola Oreščanin, Council members

Indictment: issued by the Osijek District State Attorney's Office, No: KT-308/92, dated on 03 May 1993

Criminal offence: war crime against civilians stated in Article 120, Paragraph 1 of the OKZ RH

Accused person/Defendant: Zoran Kokić, tried in absence

Defence Counsel: Dražen Matijević, lawyer from Osijek, court-appointed legal counsel

Victims:

- killed: Žarko Kaić

- wounded: Dragan Krička

VERDICT (SUMMARY)

According to the Osijek District Court's verdict No: K-60/93-39 dated on 21 September 1993, the accused Zoran Kokić was found guilty as charged that, in the vicinity of the (Yugoslav National Army's) "Artillery Range C" on 28 August 1991 in Osijek, around 11:00hours, following the order issued by a senior officer of the Yugoslav National Army, Kokić, using firearms mounted on a tank, had opened a burst of fire at the reporters/cameramen of the Croatian Television - Žarko Kaić and Dragan Krička, although Kokić had seen that they were civilians (news reporters - cameramen), thus inflicting several gunshot wounds in the abdominal area and the area of the right hip of Dragan Krička, which were severe and life-threatening wounds, and inflicting gunshot wounds on Žarko Kaić's head and face which caused the immediate death of Žarko Kaić. The accused Kokić was sentenced to 20 years in prison.

In its judgment No:I Kž 972/1993-3, the Supreme Court of the Republic of Croatia on 20 December 1994 dismissed the appeal lodged by the accused Zoran Kokić as unfounded and upheld the first-instance court verdict.