SUD BOSNE I HERCEGOVINE СУД БОСНЕ И ХЕРЦЕГОВИНЕ Number: X-KR-07/382 Sarajevo, 29 April 2008 IN THE NAME OF BOSNIA AND HERZEGOVINA The Court of Bosnia and Herzegovina, Section I for War Crimes, in the Panel comprised of Judges Minka Kreho as the President of the Panel, and Roland Dekkers and Tore Lindseth, as members of the Panel, with the participation of the Legal Advisor Amela Skrobo as the Minutes-taker, in the criminal case against the accused Mirko Todorović and Miloš Radić, for the criminal offense of Crimes against Humanity in violation of Article 172 (1) item h), in conjunction with items a) and f), Article 29 and Article 180 (1) of the Criminal Code of Bosnia and Herzegovina, deciding upon the Indictment of the Prosecutor’s Office of Bosnia and Herzegovina, number KT-RZ:140/05 of 15 June 2007, as amended on 18 April 2008, after the main and public hearing attended by the accused Mirko Todorović and his defense counsels – attorney Hamdo Kulenović until 24 January 2008 and thereafter attorney Žiko Krunić, and the accused Miloš Radić and his defense counsel Stanko Petrović, and the Prosecutor of the BiH Prosecutor’s Office, Adnan Gulamović, on 29 April 2008, in the presence of the Accused and their defense counsels, and the Prosecutor of the BiH Prosecutor’s Office, Sanja Jukić, publicly rendered and announced the following V E R D I C T The Accused 1. MIRKO TODOROVIĆ a.k.a. Banana, son of Đorđe and Smilja, née Šarac, born on 15 May 1954 in Bratunac, residing in …, Municipality of …, ethnic …, citizen of …, car mechanic, literate, driver by occupation, graduated from the Vocational Secondary School, married, father of three children, served military service in 1974 in Kraljevo and Niš, no ranks, no decorations, registered in the Bratunac Military Records, average financial status, convicted by the Judgments of …, no proceedings conducted for any other criminal offense, in custody pursuant to the Decision of the Court of BiH, number: X-KRN/07/382 of 24 May 2007, and 2. MILOŠ RADIĆ, son of Mirko and Milosava, née Todorović, born on 5 June 1959 in Srebrenica, residing in …, Municipality of …, ethnic …, citizen of …, car mechanic, literate, qualified car mechanic by occupation, married, father of three children, served the Army in 1989/90 in Travnik, registered in the Bratunac Military Records, no ranks, no decorations, average financial status, no prior convictions, no proceedings conducted for other criminal offenses, in custody pursuant to the Decision of the Court of BiH, number: X-KRN/07/382 of 24 May 2007. ARE FOUND GUILTY Because: During the armed conflict in Bosnia and Herzegovina when both the army and the police of Republika Srpska launched a widespread and systematic attack against the Bosniak civilian population in the territory of the Municipality of Bratunac, the accused Mirko Todorović and Miloš Radić, members of the Republika Srpska Army, with knowledge of such an attack, persecuted the Bosniak civilians on political, national, ethnic, cultural and religious grounds by depriving them of physical liberty, and by torture and killings, in the following manner: On 20 May 1992 during the afternoon hours, in the village of Borkovac, the Municipality of Bratunac, in a group with four other members of the Army of Republika Srpska, including Novak Stjepanović a.k.a. Krke, participated in the arrest of a group of 14 (fourteen) Bosniak civilians, namely: Hamed Alić, Hamid Alić, Halima Alić, Maho Avdić, Hamedina Ramić, Munib Sulejmanović, Hajrudin Hasanović, Hamed Velić, Fadil Sulejmanović, Amer Ramić, Naser Sulejmanović, Muharem Salkić, Mehmed Jahić and Ibro Džananović who were hiding due to the fear of the attack by the Republika Srpska army and police in an abandoned quarry, not far from the village of Borkovac where most of them resided, and thereafter took them in a line toward the village, when someone from the group of attackers killed Avdić Maho with a shot from the weapon who was at the back of the line, and thereafter tortured the frightened civilians by punching them, kicking them with boots all over their bodies, seized all their money and valuables, cursing them for their ethnicity, and thereafter took them to a slope toward a nearby creek where they lined them up with their faces turned toward the creek and then shot them from behind their back, due to which their bodies were falling into the creek, on which occasion Hamid Alić, Halima Alić, Munib Sulejmanović, Fadil Sulejmanović, Hajrudin Hasanović, Hamed Velić, Hamedina Ramić were killed due to the shots from the firearms, Therefore, As a part of the widespread and systematic attack directed against the Bosniak civilians, with knowledge of such an attack, the accused persecuted the civilian Bosniak population as accomplices on political, national, ethnic, cultural and religious grounds by depriving them of their physical liberty, by torture and killing, Whereby they committed the criminal offense of Crimes against Humanity in violation of Article 172 (1) item h), in conjunction with item a), e) and f) of the Criminal Code of BiH, all in conjunction with Article 29 and Article 180 (1) of the same Code. Therefore, pursuant to the stated statutory regulations, and in conjunction with Articles 39, 42 and 48 of the Criminal Code of Bosnia and Herzegovina, the accused Mirko Todorović and Miloš Radić are Kraljice Jelene br. 88, 71 000 Sarajevo, Bosna i Hercegovina, Tel: 033 707 100, Faks: 033 707 225 2 Краљице Јелене бр. 88, 71 000 Сарајево, Босна и Херцеговина, Тел: 033 707 100, Факс: 033 707 225 S E N T E N C E D TO IMPRISONMENT FOR A TERM OF 17 (SEVENTEEN) YEARS EACH Pursuant to Article 56 of the Criminal Code of Bosnia and Herzegovina, the time that the Accused spent in custody shall be credited to the imposed sentence of imprisonment starting from 24 May 2007 and further on, or until a possible committal to serve the sentence. II Pursuant to Article 188 (4) of the Criminal Procedure Code of Bosnia and Herzegovina, the Accused are relieved in part of the duty to compensate the costs of the proceedings, about which the Court shall render a special decision. III Pursuant to Article 198 (2) of the Criminal Procedure Code of Bosnia and Herzegovina, the injured parties shall be instructed to pursue their claims under property law in a civil action. R e a s o n i n g 1. Charges By the Indictment of the Prosecutor’s Office of Bosnia and Herzegovina, Special Department for War Crimes, number KT-RZ-140/75 of 15 June 2007, the accused Mirko Todorović and Miloš Radić were charged for the commission of the criminal offense of Crimes against Humanity in violation of Article 172 (1) item h), in conjunction with items a) and f) of the Criminal Code of Bosnia and Herzegovina. As referred to in the Indictment, the Accused committed this criminal offense on 20 May 1992, namely the persecution of civilian Bosniak population from the territory of the Municipality of Bratunac, committed by torturing a group of 14 civilians, of whom 8 were killed. The Indictment was confirmed on 21 June 2007, and the accused, namely Mirko Todorović on 6 July, and Miloš Radić on 12 July 2008, pled not guilty, after which the case was transferred to the Trial Panel, which opened the main trial on 1 October 2007. During the whole main trial, the Accused were in custody, due to the existence of special circumstances indicating that they would use their release to influence the witnesses or the accomplices, who were identified during these proceedings. Kraljice Jelene br. 88, 71 000 Sarajevo, Bosna i Hercegovina, Tel: 033 707 100, Faks: 033 707 225 3 Краљице Јелене бр. 88, 71 000 Сарајево, Босна и Херцеговина, Тел: 033 707 100, Факс: 033 707 225 2. Adduced Evidence a) Evidence for the Prosecutor’s Office During the main trial, the following witnesses were examined: Hamed Alić, Naser Sulejmanović, Elma Kaljević, Hamed Ramić, Safa Sulejmanović, Amer Ramić, Sadeta Hasanović, Rušveta Sulejmanović, Zejneba Avdić, Radoje Živković, Dane Lončarević, Suljo Čakanović, Ljubiša Todorović, Muharem Salkić, Bajro Kulovac and expert witness Vedad Tuco. The following documentary evidence was adduced: a letter by the survived victim Amer Ramić addressed to his father Hamed Ramić; a copy of the ID card of Miloš Radić; two copies of the ID card of Mirko Todorović with two different photos of the Accused; Excerpt from the criminal record dated 1 June 2005, number 12-1-6/02-235-106/05; Excerpt from the criminal record dated 31 May 2005, number 12-1-7/02-235-89/05; Photo-documentation dated 10 May 2004, number 08-02/3-5-04, 6-3132/04 (containing 78 photos); Sketch of the on-site location dated 4 May 2004, number 08-02/3-5-04,6-3132/04; Military ID record of Republika Srpska for Todorović Mirko, number 338/54; Military ID record of the SFRY for Miloš Radić, number 123997; Official Report on the action pursuant to the Order of the Court of BIH number X-KRN-07/382 of 22 May, number: 17-04/2-04-2-2105 BK of 24 May 2007; Certificate of seizure of the items, number: 17-04/2-04-2-11/07 of 23 May 2007; Record of the search of house, other premises and movable items, number: 17-04/2- 04-2-11/07 of 23 May 2007; Record of the handover of the person deprived of liberty, number: 17-04/2-04-2-6/07 of 23 May 2007; Certificate of seizure of items, number: 17- 04/2-04-2-12/07 of 23 May 2007; Record of the search of the house, other premises and movable items, number: 17-04/2-04-2-12/07 of 23 May 2007; Record of the handover of the person deprived of liberty, number: 17-04/2-04-2-6/07 of 23 May 2007; Record of exhumation KTA-609/04