13 years in prison for participation in the murder of at least 67 Bosniak civilians in the village of Lokanj

(Patria) - The Court of Bosnia and Herzegovina has issued a first-instance verdict sentencing Miroslav Marković to 13 years in prison for crimes committed in the village of Lokanj near Zvornik in the summer of 1992.

Marković was found guilty of participating in the murder of at least 67 Bosniak civilians on July 14, 1992, who were heading from Teočak towards the Sapna area.

The Council determined that Marković, as a member of the Lokanj Company of the Army of Republika Srpska (VRS), was aware of the widespread and systematic attack that was taking place in the wider Zvornik area in 1992. He was found guilty of crimes against humanity, writes Detektor.

“Considering that the widespread and systematic attack lasted for a longer period and that a large number of non-Serb population was persecuted, Marković must have been aware of this, considering the events in Kozluk, Karakaj, and Đulići,” said the presiding judge, Šaban Maksumić.

He stated that the Council does not dispute the fact that a Serb guard was killed first, or that four VRS members and several Bosniaks were killed in the conflict, but this did not call into question the conclusion about the attack.

According to the Council's assessment, most participants in the column from Teočak were unarmed and did not offer significant resistance.

“The fact that several individuals carried weapons and participated in the conflict does not diminish the civilian nature of the column,” said Maksumić, adding that the column participants intended to reach “free territory” and did not plan or organize an attack.

The Council concluded that those captured from the column were taken to the village of Lokanj, some of whom were taken to the Vidrine site and other locations, and a larger number to the Njiverice site, on the border of the villages, and that they were shot in small groups near a pit they had previously dug.

The Council determined that Marković participated in the murders based on the accused's statement from the investigation, which was corroborated by witness testimonies. Maksumić recalled that the accused stated during his interrogation that he was present at the execution site, claiming he did not shoot at people but over their heads.

The presiding judge pointed to the testimonies of several witnesses who stated that Marković, also known as Mišo Marinac, was among the soldiers who escorted the prisoners to Njiverice and killed them.

Maksumić noted that the Defense claimed during the trial that Marković left the murder site because he was attending a relative's funeral, but the Council did not accept this alibi because several witnesses saw Marković.

When determining the sentence, the Council took into account as mitigating circumstances that the accused was 20 years old at the time of the crime, had no prior convictions, and was a family man, while as aggravating circumstances, it considered the ruthlessness in killing a large number of people.

The Council ordered the accused to be detained. Marković, who resides in Austria, did not appear for the sentencing. His lawyer, Dragan Gotovac, said that the accused had problems with absence from work during the trial as well, and did not come as his presence at the sentencing was not mandatory.

An appeal against the issued first-instance verdict is permitted.

Earlier, in a separate case for crimes in Lokanj, Ljiljan Mitrović, Mile Vujević, Vukašin Drašković, and Gojko Stevanović were sentenced to a total of 53 years in prison, while Goran Maksimović, Slavko Perić, Rajo Lazarević, and Mićo Manojlović were acquitted.