Third Day of Testimony by Mujcinovic on Stupari Detentions

On his third day of testimony, defendant Safet Mujcinovic said he didn’t receive complaints from Serbs about the behaviour of his subordinate, Nedyad Hodzic. Both Mujcinovic and Hodzic have been accused of war crimes in Kladanj.

Mujcinovic, the former commander of the police station in Stupari in Kladanj, said Hodzic and some other policemen intervened in order to protect the Serb population in Stupari.

According to the indictment, the Serb population from Stupari and the surrounding villages were unlawfully detained in a school building in Stupari and then in educational workers’ buildings, where they were guarded by police in the summer of 1992. The indictment alleges that the civilians were detained in the educational workers’ buildings under the pretense of protecting their safety.

Mujcinovic and Hodzic are facing trial with Selman Busnov, Nusret Muhic, Zijad Hamzic, Ramiz Halilovic, Osman Gogic and Kahro Vejzovic, former members of civil and military police, as well as the Territorial Defense. They have all been charged with war crimes in the Kladanj area, which include the unlawful detention of Serb civilians, as well as the assault and inhumane treatment of detainees.

In response to questions by Vasvija Vidovic, Halilovic’s defense attorney, Mujcinovic said he wasn’t familiar with international law. He said the appropriate prosecution had known about the treatment of the Serb population in Stupari from the start.

When asked how Radovan and Luka Djukic came to the detention buildings, Mujcinovic said he heard someone named Vejzovic had brought them there. He said Halilovic had nothing to do with it.

With regards to defendant Nusret Muhic, Mujcinovic said he’d apprehended three Serbs in Stupari and had taken them to the police station in Kladanj in order to question them about illegal arms possession. Mujcinovic said he didn’t know any further details.

Mujcinovic said about fifty criminal reports on illegal arms possession were filed, and that Muhic wrote most of them. He said Muhic was a crime detection inspector. He said he didn’t know who was in charge of investigating crimes at the police station in Kladanj. According to the charges, Muhic was the head of the crime fighting group with the Kladanj police.

The trial will continue in two weeks. Hamzic’s defense attorney will examine Mujcinovic at the next hearing.