11 indicted for war crimes against Bosniaks in Zvornik: Hundreds of bodies found in Crni Vrh mass grave

(Patria) - The Prosecutor of the Special Department for War Crimes of the BiH Prosecutor's Office has filed an indictment against:    
 
1. Blagojević Vidoje, born in 1950 in Bratunac, previously convicted by the ICTY, a citizen of BiH and the Republic of Serbia,
2. Arapović Ivan, known as „Šicer“, born in 1964 in Zvornik, a citizen of BiH and the Republic of Serbia,
3. Arapović Milan, known as „Top“, born in 1962 in Zvornik, a citizen of BiH and the Republic of Serbia,
4. Pejić Kosta, known as „Burek“, born in 1961 in Zvornik, a citizen of BiH,
5. Radić Božo, known as „Bobo“, born in 1953 in Zvornik, a citizen of BiH,
6. Savić Mile, known as „Cuko“, born in 1964 in Zvornik, a citizen of BiH and the Republic of Serbia,
7. Blagojević Mile, known as „Patak“, born in 1966 in Zvornik, a citizen of BiH,
8. Pejić Ljubiša, known as „Čađo“, born in 1964 in Zvornik, previously convicted, a citizen of BiH,
9. Vasiljević Stevo, known as „Kuružnjak“, born in 1962 in Osmaci, a citizen of BiH,
10. Pejić Branko, born in 1964 in Zvornik, previously convicted, a citizen of
BiH,
11. Radović Verica, born in 1955 in Loznica, a citizen of BiH and the Republic of Serbia.
 
The accused are charged that, during the war and armed conflict in BiH, as part of a widespread and systematic attack directed against the Bosniak civilian population in the Zvornik area and its surroundings, in late May and early June 1992, all of whom, except for the accused Radović Verica and the accused Blagojević Vidoje, were members of the Karakaj Company within the TO Zvornik, and later the Zvornik Brigade of the VRS, and all acted contrary to the rules of international humanitarian law. 
 
According to the indictment, the accused from number 2 to number 10, together with other persons, in their capacity as guards at the Technical School Center in Karakaj, participated in the unlawful detention and inhumane treatment of approximately 700 Bosniak men and boys, aged 15 to 70, who, after being separated from women, children, and the elderly in Bijeli Potok, were taken to unlawful detention in the TSC Karakaj, and failed to prevent the murders and enforced disappearances of at least 150 Bosniak civilians who were unlawfully detained there.
 
According to the indictment, the detained civilians were beaten by the accused on two occasions, forcing the civilians to pass through a gauntlet, and these accused then kept the civilians in inhumane conditions, during which the civilians were beaten and abused in various ways, thereby causing great suffering and serious physical and psychological injuries to the victims.

The indictment states that about 20 civilians died as a result of the inhumane conditions, and that the guards also did not prevent the murder of prisoners by known and unknown soldiers within the premises where the guards were guarding them, nor did the guards prevent the detained civilians from being taken away in an unknown direction, from which point many of them disappeared without a trace, and the mortal remains of a large number of murdered civilians have not been found to this day.

The mortal remains of the found murdered civilians were mostly exhumed from one of the largest mass graves in BiH, the Crni Vrh site near Zvornik, so that about 420 victims taken to Bijeli Potok on June 1, 1992, have been found and identified so far, and about 240 victims have not been found to this day.

According to the indictment, the accused Blagojević Vidoje is charged that, in his capacity as commander of the Zvornik Brigade of the VRS, as a superior, he failed to take necessary and reasonable measures to prevent the unlawful detention, inhumane treatment, enforced disappearances, and murders of these detained Bosniak civilians, or failed to take necessary and reasonable measures to initiate proceedings for the punishment of the perpetrators of the aforementioned criminal acts.

The accused Radović Verica is charged with consciously and voluntarily killing two prisoners at close range out of personal revenge.

The accused are charged with committing the criminal offense of crimes against humanity under Article 172 of the Criminal Code of BiH. The prosecution will prove the allegations of the indictment by hearing 129 witnesses, including 7 protected witnesses, by hearing military experts, and by using over 400 material pieces of evidence.

The indictment has been forwarded to the Court of BiH for confirmation.