The Court of Bosnia and Herzegovina delivered a Judgment today in Case S1 1 K 023242 17 Kri, finding the accused Saša Cvetković guilty of the criminal offense of War Crime against the Civilian Population under Article 142 paragraph 1 of the Criminal Code of the Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia (CC SFRY) and sentencing the accused to 12 (twelve) years’ imprisonment.
The accused Saša Cvetković was found guilty because he, during an imminent threat of war in the territory of Srebrenica and Bratunac municipalities and the armed conflict between the Territorial Defense of the Republic of Bosnia and Herzegovina and the Army of the Serbian Republic of Bosnia and Herzegovina, acting in violation of rules of international humanitarian law and in breach of Article 3(1)(a) and (c) of the Geneva Convention relative to the Protection of Civilian Persons in Time of War of 12 August 1949, took an active part in the murders and rapes of civilian population of Rom and Bosniak ethnicity.
Pursuant to Article 50(1) of the CC SFRY, the time that the accused spent in pretrial custody shall be credited towards the imposed sentence of imprisonment.
Pursuant to Article 198(2) of the Criminal Procedure Code of Bosnia and Herzegovina (CPC BiH), in conjunction with Articles 200 and 202 of the Law on Obligations, the Court granted in part a claim filed by injured party and ordered the accused Saša Cvetković to pay to injured party 15,000.00 BAM as non-pecuniary damage (5,000.00 BAM for sustained fear and mental anguish on account of violation of freedom, dignity, moral and rights of person; and 10,000.00 BAM for mental anguish due to impaired abilities by 25%), coupled with default interest commencing from the date of adjudication until final payment, within 30 days after the judgment becomes final or face enforced collection.
Pursuant to Article 188(4) CPC BiH, the accused is relieved of the duty to pay costs of the criminal proceedings, and those costs shall paid from the budgetary appropriations.
