Custody Order Motion for Pincic Rejected

The Court of Bosnia and Herzegovina rejects a State Prosecution’s custody order motion for Zrinko Pincic, whose execution of sentence was discontinued due to wrong application of law.

At a hearing held on December 9 the Prosecution requested custody for Pincic due to a possibility that he might flee and influence witnesses.

The Court of Bosnia and Herzegovina recently ordered the discontinuation of sentence against Pincic after the Court of Bosnia and Herzegovina had determined that, according to the European Convention, the indictee’s rights were violated.

Other war-crime indictees, whom the Court releases from prison on the same grounds, were not ordered into custody either. The Court explained that the law did not contain provisions, regulation a possibility for ordering persons, whose execution of sentence has been discontinued, into custody.

In 2010 Pincic, former member of the Croatian Defence Council, HVO, was sentenced to nine years in prison for having committed war crimes against the civilian population in the Konjic area.

According to the verdict, from November 1992 to March 1993 Pincic came to a house in Donje Selo, where Serb civilians were detained, took person A out and forced her to have sexual intercourse with him on several occasions.

The Appellate Chamber is due to hold a session in Pincic’s case on Tuesday, December 17.