Verdict for Fikret Hodžić on March 7

(Patria) - The verdict for Fikret Hodžić and the legal entity Srebrena malina will be delivered on March 7 at 9 AM, BiH Court judge Amela Huskić said today, after the conclusion of the trial in the repeated proceedings against Hodžić and his company FH Srebrena malina with the closing statements of the Prosecution and the defense.

Prosecutor Džermin Pašić requested from the Court panel, which, in addition to judge Huskić, also includes judges Redžib Begić and Staniša Gluhajić, that Hodžić be convicted, stating that the Prosecution has proven the allegations in the indictment in their entirety.

On the other hand, Hodžić's defense stated the opposite, requesting that Hodžić be acquitted of guilt.

The retrial, before the appellate panel, was held after the BiH Court, following a decision by the Constitutional Court which found that Hodžić's right to a fair trial had been violated, overturned the then final verdict and scheduled a new main hearing.

Lawyer Mirna Avdibegović stated after the hearing that the violation found by the BiH Constitutional Court occurred during the delivery of the first-instance verdict in 2023 and continued through the appellate verdict.

"You are now, through any changes, adjustments, arrangements, putting something worse on the person and trying to validate and fix that violation. The Constitutional Court clearly stated to remove doubt as to whether the accused were informed of the accusations against them from the beginning. They were not, and the Constitutional Court says so. Money laundering is a new/old qualification. The Prosecution today states that it still considers that there are elements of this criminal offense, acting contrary to the decision of the Constitutional Court in its statement that they were acquitted of the criminal offense of money laundering and the instructions of the BiH Court. We believe this was done not for the Court to retain jurisdiction, but for this Prosecution to retain its jurisdiction to act in this case," said Avdibegović.