Execution of Sentence against Kapic Discontinued

“The quashing of the State Court’s verdict by the Constitutional Court of BiH means that the legal grounds for further execution of imprisonment sentence no longer exist. Therefore, the Appellate Section has rendered a decision, discontinuing the execution of 17-year sentence, which was pronounced against Suad Kapic,” the Court of BiH announced.
 
Kapic, former member of the Third Corps of the Army of BiH, was pronounced guilty, under the second instance verdict, of having killed four Serb prisoners of war in the Sanski Most area in September 1995.
 
In April 2008 the first instance Chamber acquitted Kapic of charges, but the verdict was quashed. After that the Appellate Chamber sentenced Kapic to 17 years in prison. Both the State Prosecution and Defence appealed the verdict, but their appeals were rejected.
 
Kapic was sentenced according to the Criminal Code of BiH, but the Constitutional Court quashed the verdict due to wrong application of law.
 
So far 15 persons, who were sentenced for war crimes and genocide, have been released from prisons, where they were serving their sentences, because the Criminal Code of BiH was applied in their cases instead of the Criminal Code of the former Yugoslavia, which is more favourable to perpetrators.
 
The proceedings against these persons were renewed before the Court of BiH. Shorter sentences were then pronounced against them in accordance with the Yugoslav Criminal Code.