Predrag Bastah finally sentenced to 35 years in prison for crimes in Vlasenica

The Court of Bosnia and Herzegovina rejected the Defence's appeal and upheld the first-instance verdict sentencing Predrag Bastah to 22 years in prison for crimes in Mračni dol, i.e. a unified sentence of 35 years in prison for crimes committed in Vlasenica, his defence attorney Milan Romanić confirmed to the Balkan Investigative Reporting Network of Bosnia and Herzegovina (BIRN BiH).

In the first-instance proceedings, Bastah was sentenced to 20 years in prison for the murders of 34 people committed in 1992 at the Mračni dol site near Vlasenica, Detektor writes.

The indictment charged him with the murders of 37 people, but the Trial Chamber dismissed part of the indictment concerning three people covered by a previous final verdict, which imposed a sentence of 22 years in prison for crimes in Vlasenica.

When pronouncing the verdict for Mračni dol, the Chamber consolidated Bastah's sentences into a unified sentence of 35 years in prison.

The Defence had earlier requested the Appeals Chamber to quash the verdict sentencing him to 20 years in prison for a crime against humanity committed in 1992 in Vlasenica, while the Prosecutor's Office proposed that the first-instance verdict be upheld.

“We are filing an appeal with the Constitutional Court. That is the next step,” announced his defence attorney Milan Romanić, who had earlier stated during the proceedings that his client's rights had been violated.

When asked by BIRN BiH, the State Prosecutor's Office confirmed that they had received the final verdict, while the Court of Bosnia and Herzegovina stated that they would inform the public after all parties in the proceedings have received the notification.

There is no possibility of appeal against the final verdict.