Crime in Zvornik

The trial for a war crime against civilians, committed in Zvornik in 1992, is conducted before the War Crimes Chamber of the Special War Crimes Department of the District Court in Belgrade.

INDICTMENT (SUMMARY)

Office of the War Crimes Prosecutor of the Republic of Serbia raised the indictment (No. KTRZ 17/04, of 12 August 2005), against Branko Grujić, Branko Popović (alias “Marko Pavlović”), Duško Vučković (a.k.a. “Repić”), Dragan Slavković (a.k.a. “Toro” and “Major Toro”), Ivan Korać (a.k.a. “Zoks”), Siniša Filipović (a.k.a. “Lopovo”), Dragutin Dragićević (a.k.a. “Bosanac”), for committing a war crime against civilians. The mentioned persons were indicted for committing the following:

from early May to mid July 1992, in the course of civil war in Bosnia and Herzegovina, in the municipality Zvornik area, they violated international law rules, namely the Geneva Convention of 12 August 1949 relative to the Protection of Civilian Persons in Time of War and the Protocol Additional to the Geneva Conventions (Protocol II, of 1977): 
– the accused Branko Grujić, holding the presidential offices in Municipality Crisis Headquarters, Provisional Government and War Headquarters in Zvornik, and the accused Branko Popović, in the capacities of Commander of the Territorial Defence Headquarters and member of the Zvornik War Headquarters, were indicted for a forcible transfers of Bosnian civilians from the villages of Kozluk and Skočić;

– the accused Branko Grujić, Branko Popović, Duško Vučković, Dragan Slavković, Ivan Korać, Siniša Filipović and Dragutin Dragićević, together with a person nicknamed “Pufta”, as members of the unit “Igor Marković” – “Žute ose” [Yellow Wasps] were charged for the crimes committed in the Home of Culture in Čelopek – abuse, physical torture, bodily harm, killing by inflicting serious suffering, ordering fights between captives, forcing fathers and their sons, including other captured persons to mutually perform unnatural sexual acts;

– the accused Branko Grujić, Branko Popović, Duško Vučković, Dragan Slavković and Ivan Korać were charged that, in the period between early May and 15 July 1992, at the “Ekonomija” farm, the accused Vučković, Slavković and Korać, together with three unidentified persons nicknamed “Pufta”, “Savo” and “Saša”, unauthorizedly entered on several occasions premises wherein the following civilians were detained: Muhamed Redžić, Edib Omerović, Admir Hadžiavdić, Kemo Korkutović, Esad Fazlić, Bego Bukvić, Fadil Kopić, Fehim Dautović, Nesib Dautović, Husein Širak, Ibrahim Subotić, Jusuf Avdispahić, Meho Huseinović, Abdulah Buljubašić, a.k.a. “Bubica”, Sefudin Džihić, Almir Avdić, Sead Avdić, a.k.a. “Činda”, and 7 more unidentified detainees. They were beaten and tortured there in various ways. As a consequence, the captives Abdulah Buljubašić a.k.a. “Bubica” and Nesib Dautović died, including two more unidentified captives. The accused also forced the captives to plunder houses. The accused cut with knife skin parts from the captives’ bodies. The person nicknamed “Pufta” cut up with knife the neck of captive Ismet Širak. The accused Branko Grujić and Branko Popović knew about the crimes committed by Vučković, Slavković, Korać and other unidentified persons, and yet failed to prevent of punish the perpetrators.

TRIAL MONITORING REPORTS

Before the Special War Crimes Department of the District Court in Belgrade – the War Crimes Chamber (comprising judge Tatjana Vuković (Chamber President), judges Olivera Anđelković and Veselin Krstajić (Chamber Members)), and the Office of the Prosecutor represented by Milan Petrović – the Deputy War Crimes Prosecutor of the Republic of Serbia.

The following documents provide a summary of monitoring reports on the trials held until July 2006, available in Croatian language.

VERDICT

On 12 June 2008, the accused Dragan Slavković, Ivan Korać and Siniša Filipović were found guilty. Dragan Slavković was sentenced to 15 years in prison, Ivan Korać to 13 years, and Siniša Filipović to 3 years in prison. The accused Dragutin Dragićević was acquitted of charges.

In respect of the accused Branko Grujić and Branko Popović, the trial had been separated before.