Retrial for Oric and Muhic?

SARAJEVO, (Patria) - The Appellate Chamber overturned the acquittal of Naser Oric and Sabahudin Muhic for crimes in the vicinity of Srebrenica and ordered a retrial, the Balkan Investigative Reporting Network of Bosnia and Herzegovina (BIRN BiH) has learned.

The BiH Prosecutor's Office confirmed to BIRN BiH that the first-instance verdict against Oric and Muhic was overturned and a retrial was ordered.

The BiH Court confirmed to the Patria agency that a second-instance decision has been made, but that the public will be informed in a timely manner once it is delivered to all parties in the proceedings.

Oric's defense attorney, Lejla Čović, said she has not yet received any decision.

In October last year, the BiH Court acquitted Oric, former commander of the Army of Bosnia and Herzegovina (ABiH) in Srebrenica, and Muhic, a member of these forces, of killing three prisoners of Serb nationality in the villages of Zalazje, Lolići, and Kunjerac in 1992.

In early May this year, the BiH Prosecutor's Office asked the Appellate Chamber to overturn the first-instance verdict acquitting Oric and Muhic and to order a retrial. The prosecution appealed due to a significant violation of criminal procedure provisions and an incomplete and incorrect determination of the factual situation.

Prosecutor Miroslav Janjić stated that this is a unique verdict in the case law of the State Court because, according to him, it is based on imaginary evidence. He added that the Trial Chamber issued one verdict but sent a different written copy.

"The Chamber states in its verdict that it refers to the practice of the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia (ICTY), according to which it will not assess each piece of evidence individually and connect them, which is contrary to the Criminal Procedure Code of this country," said Janjić.

The defense proposed that the BiH Prosecutor's Office's appeal be rejected in its entirety and that the first-instance verdict from October last year be confirmed, stating that the BiH Prosecutor's Office's appeal was "confusing, unclear, and incomprehensible."