Local Justice Doboj: Beslaga and His Companions
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Witness Milorad Djuric said that armed uniformed persons knocked on his door, while he was in his house with his wife and mother, in the evening hours in late May 1992, but they did not open it, because they were scared.
They were ‘zenga’ members [Croatian National Guard Zbor narodne garde ZNG], who had come to the area before. I did not recognise indictee Beslaga, whom I had known from before, among them, the witness said.
Witness Djuric said that he saw the dead bodies of Sreto Mlinarevic, Vlado Vidic and Zdravko Djuric in Sreto Mlinarevic’s house, but he did not know who killed them.
When asked by Doboj District Prosecutor Slavko Krulj about the murder of Pero Juricic, the witness said that he saw nothing and that he did not want to speak about what he heard.
The District Prosecution in Doboj has charged Senahid Ribic, known as Beslaga, former member of the 102nd Brigade of the Croatian Defence Council, HVO in Odzak, with having arrested civilians, physically and mentally abused arrested civilians, killed civilians, confiscated property and participated in setting houses on fire in the Odzak area in the period from May to July 1992.
Second witness Djordjo Kojic said that he saw indictee Ribic at a barricade in Proleterska Street in Odzak on April 28, 1992, adding that the indictee was armed and that he did not let him pass.
He got his rifle ready to shoot. He cursed my Serbian mother. After that I took a detour to my house in Jezero. I then went to Josava village with my wife and two children, Kojic said.
Witness Kojic mentioned that he used to go home in order to take care of his cattle in the morning and evening hours every day until May 10, 1992.
When I visited the place the last time, Beslaga opened fire above the car in which I was. Bullets hit some objects about 20 metres away from the car, Kojic said.
The witness said that, following his departure, his neighbours told him that the indictee set his house on fire, took parts from his automobile and eventually drove his Yugo 55 car, which was parked in front of the house.
Kojic was not able to remember the circumstances related to the murder of Sreto Mlinarevic, Vlado Vidic and Zdravko Djuric, as well as Pero and Simo Ljubicic. After the Prosecutor had reminded him of his statement given to the Doboj Police in 2007, the witness said that his godfather late Ilija Milosevic told me that Beslaga and his companions participated in those murders.
Defence attorney Dzavid Slamnik objected to this statement, explaining that the witness did not have direct information about the events in question.
Witness Muhamed Sogorovic, who was supposed to testify at this hearing, failed to appear in the courtroom.
He has received the invitation. Therefore the District Court will request his apprehension to one of the future hearings, said Trial Chamber Chairwoman Radmila Stancic.
The trial is due to continue on Wednesday, September 19.
A.G.
