Crime in Ovčara (Milan Bulić)

Supreme Court of Serbia altered the verdict of the War Crimes Chamber of the District Court in Belgrade and sentenced Milan Bulić to 2 years in prison for the commission of war crimes against war prisoners by torturing prisoners of war on 20 and 21 November 1991 in Ovčara.

INDICTMENT

The same indictment of the Office of the War Crimes Prosecutor of the Republic of Serbia includes several persons indicted for the commission of war crimes against war prisoners on 20 and 21 November 1991 at the Ovčara farm near Vukovar.

GENERAL INFORMATION

District Court in Belgrade

Department: War Crimes Chamber

Chamber: judge Vesko Krstajić, Chamber President; judges Gordana Božilović-Petrović and Vinka Beraha-Nikičević, Chamber Members

Criminal act: war crime against war prisoners, under Article 144 of the FRY Criminal Act, in conjunction with Article 22 of the same Act

Defendant: Milan Bulić

Victims – physically tortured: Damjan Samardžić, Emil Čakalić and two unidentified male persons, known as Gašpar and Kemo

THE TRIAL HISTORY OF THE CASE

Because of illness of the defendant Bulić, on 27 January 2005 the trial in his respect was separated and concluded. It had been conducted before the same court panel that conducted the court proceedings against the other defendants.

VERDICT

On 30 January 2006, the first instance verdict of the War Crimes Chamber of the District Court in Belgrade was rendered. The defendant Milan Bulić was found guilty of the commission of war crimes against war prisoners that he was beating and maltreating in the gauntlet at Ovčara and in the hangar where they were placed. He was sentenced to 8 (eight) years in prison.

You can read the verdict of the War Crimes Chamber of the District Court in Belgrade (in Croatian) here.

However, the Supreme Court of Serbia altered the verdict of the of the War Crimes Chamber of the District Court in Belgrade in respect of the sentencing section and it sentenced the defendant Bulić to 2 (two) years in prison.