Trial of Bosnian Serb Forces Accused of Zecovi Attack Begins

The trial of fourteen defendants charged with the murder of civilians in the village of Zecovi, near Prijedor, began with a reading of the indictment and the state prosecution’s introductory statement.

Defendants Dusan Milunic, Radomir Stojnic, Radovan Cetic, Dusko Zoric, Zoran Stojnic, Zeljko Grbic, Ilija Zoric, Zoran Milunic, Bosko Grujicic, Ljubisa Cetic, Rade and Uros Grujcic, Zdravko Antonic and Rajko Gnjatovic have been charged with committing acts of murder, torture, sexual violence, as well as destructing and confiscating property from the local residents of Zecovi.

According to the charges, they participated in a joint criminal enterprise with the civil and military authorities of the municipality of Prijedor, which involved a widespread and systematic attack on the village, conducted by the army and police of Republika Srpska from July 23-28, 1992.

“At least 150 Bosniak civilians were killed in the Zecovi area, twenty civilians were killed at other locations, while thirty civilians were killed in detention camps in the municipality of Prijedor,” prosecutor Izet Odobasic said.

Odobasic said the bodies of the victims were hidden in mass graves, and a certain number of them had been found.

The indictment alleges that considering their functions, Dusan Milunic, Radomir Stojnic and Radovan Cetic lead the execution of the joint criminal enterprise, and also planned, aided and abetted the persecution of the civilian population.

“They met in Rasavci on July 22, 1992, and conveyed a plan to begin a search in the village of Zecovi on July 23, although they knew there were no more weapons in the village. Dusan Milunic and Radomir Stojnic lined up the Rasavacka Company in the presence of Radovan Cetic on July 23. They informed them about the plan to have the army and police go through the village,” Odobasic read.

According to the prosecution’s charges, at the time Milunic was the commander of the Rasavacka Company with the 6thBattalion of the 43rd Brigade of the Bosnian Serb Army, Radomir Stojnic was the commander of the reserve police station in Rasavci, while Radovan Cetic was the president of the Serbian Democratic Party and crisis committee for the village of Rasavci. The other defendants were members of the Rasavacka Company, the police and other paramilitary and armed formations.

Odobasic said that by examining witnesses and presenting material evidence, he would prove that civilians were shot in front of the Mladen Stojanovic school building and on a road near an intersection that leads towards Ribnjak on July 23, 1992.

In addition to other charges, Odobasic said defendant Bosko Grujicic locked about forty civilians inside a house in the hamlet of Bradari and set the house on fire.

“We shall also prove murder was committed in the Tocak area and that Rajko Gnjatovic shot five civilians. We shall prove the murder of civilians in front of the Zikina cafe, and that Ljubisa Cetic deprived them of their lives,” the prosecutor said.

Bosko Grujicic, Zeljko Grbic, Rade Grujcic and Uros Grujcic are also charged with sexual abuse and the murder of 29 women and children in the hamlet of Gradina. The bodies of the victims were allegedly hidden in a mass grave. They still have not been found.

“I can say that Zecovi was a wonderful, lively village that had its land, but it became dead after the attack. These are not my words, but the words of a witness who lived and still lives in Zecovi,” Odobasic said. He said none of the 700 Bosniak residents stayed in the village after the attack in 1992.

The defense teams did not present their introductory statements. The first prosecution witness will be examined on April 24.