Milan Šimić arrested in Srebrenik, suspected of war crimes against civilians

(Patria) - Acting on the order of a prosecutor from the Special Department for War Crimes, SIPA police officers located and apprehended suspect Milan Šimić, known as "Robi", born in 1975 in Gradačac.

The suspect is under investigation by the Prosecutor's Office of BiH and is accused of, during the war and armed conflict in BiH, as a member of the 107th Viteška Motorized Brigade of the HVO and ARBiH structures in the Gradačac and Srebrenik area, acting contrary to the provisions of the Geneva Conventions on the Protection of Civilian Persons during War.

He is accused of, during 1994, contacting and addressing persons of Serbian nationality residing in the village of Gornja Špionica, Srebrenik, who feared for their lives and existence as persons of Serbian nationality in the area under ARBiH control, among whom were 5 women and one man, and three civilians were over 60 years old, and falsely offering them that he would transport them with ARBiH members to the area of Pelagićevo under VRS control for a monetary compensation of 1000 DEM each.

During the transport, the civilians were taken to an unknown location where they were robbed and killed, after which all traces of them were lost. Of the aforementioned six persons, only the remains of one civilian were found in the riverbed of the Tinja River in Brčko District of BiH, and the bodies of the other civilians have not yet been found.

The suspect is charged with the criminal offense of war crimes against the civilian population. Within the legal deadline, SIPA members will bring the suspect to the acting prosecutor, who will question him and then make a decision on further actions.