Indictment for the murder of 22 members of the Sarajlić, Malagić, and Sejmenović families

SARAJEVO, (Patria) - A prosecutor from the Special Department for War Crimes has filed an indictment against: 1. Miljanović Živan, aka “Žika”, born in 1952 in Bijeljina, 2. Bokarić Stevo, born in 1949 in Bijeljina, 3. Sarić Goran, aka ”Sara”, born in 1964 in Konjic, 4. Petrović Jovica, born in 1968 in Bijeljina, 5. Simić Mirko aka ”Dizna”, born in 1968 in Bijeljina
6. Marković Ljubo aka ”Kleco”, born in 1971 in Sarajevo, 7. Kočević Slavenko, aka ”Kino”, born in 1970 in Sokolac, 8. Pržulj Zvonko, aka ”Đonto” and “Bleso”, born in 1970 in Sokolac.

The accused are charged with acting contrary to the provisions of the Geneva Conventions on the Protection of Civilian Persons in Time of War, in their capacity as managers of the Public Security Station Bijeljina and the State Security Sector, and as members of the intervention unit of the SJB Bijeljina and the Special Unit of the Ministry of Internal Affairs of the RS, so-called “Pahuljice” from Sokolac.

They are accused of unlawfully detaining and abducting the entire Sarajlić, Sejmenović, and Malagić families from the Bukreš settlement in Bijeljina on the night of September 24/25, 1992, a total of 22 people, of whom more than half were women, children, and the elderly. After their capture and transport to the place called Balatun, the aforementioned civilians were executed by firearms, their bodies were thrown into the Drina River, and after the war, they were exhumed at several locations along the Sava River in Serbia and buried in the Sremska Mitrovica area, while the bodies of four murdered victims are still being searched for.

The youngest victim was a child of 6 years old and the oldest was an elderly woman of 72 years of age.

The accused are charged with the criminal offense of war crimes against the civilian population under Article 142 of the Criminal Code of the SFRY, and the Prosecutor's Office of Bosnia and Herzegovina will prove the guilt of the accused by calling 111 witnesses, including direct eyewitnesses to the abduction and murder, of whom 8 will testify with assigned protection measures, as well as by submitting hundreds of collected evidence materials.

The indictment has been forwarded to the Court of Bosnia and Herzegovina.