In the continuation of the trial for the crimes committed in the area of Teslic, the defense witness said that she saw Predrag Markocevic and the accused Dusan Kuzmanovic from June 9thto 12th, 1992, after the armed clashes started in Gornji Rankovici when she brought food to the police.
Witness Danica Pajic recalled 1992, when she worked in a restaurant in Buletic, near Teslic, and stated that in May of the same year, she was mobilized into civil protection, and her tasks were to settle refugees in villages.
According to her, at the beginning of June, three people from Doboj, whom she heard were “Mice”, came to the restaurant where she worked. Then they came to her at the bar and told her to close the restaurant. When asked about the situation in the village of Gornji Rankovici, she stated that she was carrying food for the police and that she heard gunshots and volleys, but that she did not know what was happening.
“We were moved on June 8th and the offensive began, and on June 9th they brought the police and we brought them food. We brought food on June 9th, 10th, 11th and 12th. During those four days, I saw Dusan Kuzmanovic and Predrag Markocevic. We asked Dusan for cigars,” said Pajic, adding that she did not go to Gornji Rankovici.
Answering cross-examination, the witness said that when the shooting was heard, people of Serbian nationality were evicted from the village.
Markocevic and Kuzmanovic were accused together with Marinko Djukic of the persecution of the Bosniak and Croat population from the area of Teslic – murder, imprisonment, torture and other inhuman acts. According to the indictment, Kuzmanovic was the head of the Public Security Station (SJB) in Teslic, Markocevic was the commander, and Djukic was the head of the crime service.
Nenad Devic, who was heard as a Prosecution witness at the end of September 2020, explained that his former colleague Hasan Iriskic came to intervene for his brother who was detained by the police because he was armed.
He said that Hasan was also arrested at the time and that he thinks that this happened when “Mice” were in Teslic. As he explained, with the help of one of the members of “Mice“, Iriskic was released.
When asked if he remembered who Markocevic and Djukicwere, the witness stated that he had heard that Djukic should be appointed chief, and it was planned for Markocevic to be station commander and that he did not know if he had been appointed.
Devic, who was directly questioned by the Defense of Djukic, stated that one reserve policeman was killed in Gornji Rankovici and that one of the members of “Mice” was wounded.
He recalled “whispering that some people were killed” and that he was waiting in the office with person KD-5 because an investigation should be conducted in front of the Secretariat of Internal Affairs, where people were killed. As he explained, Djuka came and said that there would be an investigation and that they should not move away.
“However, the one from Doboj, a certain Milan Savic, was there and gave some instructions that the dead bodies should be removed. Milan Savic was the head of ‘Mice‘ (…) We eventually went home,” said the witness.
Answering the questions of the Trial Chamber, Devicemphasized that everything changed with the arrival of “Mice” and that they lined up all the police and slapped them, and that he did not know if they slapped any of the accused.
The continuation of the trial is scheduled for July 10th, Detektor reports.
E.Dz.
