Cause of Death not Determined

Testifying at the trial of Slobodan Bogdanovic and Goran Sladoje, who are charged with crimes in Sarajevo, a court medicine expert was not able to determine the cause of death on the basis of an expert examination of parts of Suad Besic’s bones.

“Had I noticed any injuries on the bones, I would have mentioned them in my findings. When I conducted the medical processing, the identity of the person was not known,” said Hamza Zujo, court medicine expert, testifying before the Cantonal Court in Sarajevo.  

Zujo said that he sent a DNA sample for an analysis and that several family members donated blood samples, adding that, after that it was determined that the remains belonged to Suad Besic.
 
Bogdanovic and Sladoje are charged with having come to Besic’s house on June 13, 1992 and took Bajro and Suad Besic from the house to a garage, where they beat them. They allegedly then took them to the Jewish Cemetery, where they used them as human shields. Suad was killed on that occasion.

At this hearing Prosecutor Sead Krestalica proposed that witness Rukija Besic’s statement be read in the courtroom, considering the fact that she was an immobile person. However, the Defence teams objected to the proposal. The Trial Chamber decided to invite the witness, but, in case she would not be able to appear, she would have to submit medical evidence to prove it.   

The trial is due to continue on June 2.