Jevic et al: Executions and Robberies in Potocari

Witness S-100, who was deployed to Potocari as a member of the Jahorina Training Centre with the Ministry of Internal Affairs of Republika Srpska, MUP RS, said he saw was witness to murder.

“Nedjo Milidragovic took a group of 15 or 20 people to some spring and shot them. Before doing so, he told me and person A that we should be better Serb soldiers and come with him. He lined them up. They were facing away from him. I watched him kill two or three men and then I left,” S-100 said.

Other witnesses testified earlier that Milidragovic was Commander of a squad with the Jahorina Training Centre.

Protected witness S-100 testified for the Prosecution of Bosnia and Herzegovina at the trial of Dusko Jevic, Mendeljev Djuric, Goran Markovic and Nedjo Ikonic. He identified the first three indictees, saying he saw them during the course of his three-day engagement in Potocari. He did not mention or recognise the fourth indictee in the courtroom.

The indictment alleges that Jevic was Commander of the Training Centre, Djuric and Ikonic were Company Commanders and Markovic was a Squad Commander. The indictment charges them with having participated in the forcible resettlement of people and murder.

The witness recalled that, prior to leaving Mount Jahorina, Jevic told them that they would “get even for what happened to them in 1992”. As he found out later, this statement referred to an earlier attack on Serb forces.

As stated by witness S-100, upon their arrival in Potocari members of the Training Center disarmed UNPROFOR members. After that, they were tasked with searching Muslim houses, but they only found one bed-ridden man.

“I remember coming across a disabled man. He was lying on the floor and his wheelchair was there as well. I hit the door with my leg to open it. He got scared and he said: ‘Don’t hurt me, please’. I asked Milidragovic to come. He told me to leave,” the witness said, adding he then heard two or three gunshots.

S-100 told the Court that, as per an order issued by Milidragovic and indictee Markovic, he took money and other valuables from men who had been separated and detained in a few houses.

“We told them to take their money out and that they must not carry any valuables into the buses or else they were going to be shot. We were supposed to hand those things to Nedjo and Goran at the Base. We kept some for us, but we gave most of the things to them. There was a lot of money- dollar bills, but I cannot say how many thousands,” he said.

As stated by the protected witness, members of the Training Centre participated in the separation of men. He said that Djuric and Milidragovic were present at the location as well.

As the Defence teams did not have the witness’ earlier statements, they will cross-examine him at a later stage.

The trial is due to continue on November 4, when a new Prosecution witness will testify.

M.T.