Belgrade: Darko Šarić's trial postponed, defense attorneys requested judge's recusal

SARAJevo, (Patria) - The trial of Darko Šarić and 15 other defendants for money laundering has been postponed in the Special Court in Belgrade, as defense attorneys requested the recusal of Siniša Petrović, the newly appointed judge on the panel presiding over their case.

As Šarić's defense attorney Dalibor Katančević stated on behalf of all defendants, Judge Petrović had already tried these defendants in a drug trafficking case and convicted them.

- He had multiple procedural roles concerning these defendants. He has already tried and convicted them, thus his impartiality is questionable, especially since the Court of Appeals acquitted some of them.

If he were to preside now, the defendants' right to a fair trial would be violated. We would not be able to change his stance on the guilt of the accused with evidence, as these two cases are closely related. He cannot objectively assess the facts and deliver an objective verdict - Katančević said.

Another defense attorney, Danilo Šarić, finds it incomprehensible that the President of the Higher Court made the decision to include Petrović on the panel, given that he had already tried them, and had also rendered verdicts based on plea agreements for nine defendants.

The defense attorney stated that Judge Petrović's decision-making process in this proceeding is contaminated and that he had rendered the previous verdict with a high degree of certainty, which was also incorporated into the final judgment.

The next hearing is scheduled for March 2, Nova.rs reports.