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Jasmin Saric and Sedjad Djerahovic, former members of the Bosnian Army, have been charged with participating in the physical abuse of Andjelko Bozic and his sons Nedeljko and Veseljko in the village of Bukovica in the municipality of Zenica on June 16, 1992. Andjelko Bozic died as a result of his injuries. His sons were severely injured.
Defense witness Rajko Stjepanovic was unable to testify at the cantonal court of Zenica due to his poor health. A statement of his was read out loud at today’s hearing instead. In the statement, he said he returned from work one day in 1992, when his wife and mother told him they saw members of the Bozic family tied up and covered in blood. He said they told him that they were being escorted through Banlozi by soldiers named Sabahudin Isakovic and Selimovic, also known as Lisac.
In the statement, Stjepanovic said he went to a nearby school building where the Territorial Defense was based in order to inquire about the Bozics.
“I saw a fur hat, a small mirror, some map and minutes on the table, so it crossed my mind that the hat belonged to Andjelko Bozic and that the map was the reason for their arrest, because according to rumour his younger son had talked about some weapons. I was told the commander would see me on the following day and he did. Jasmin Saric asked me if we had any weapons…They conducted a search on June 23 and confiscated my hunting gun,” Stjepanovic said in his statement.
Stjepanovic said he heard that Saric’s subordinates had taken the Bozics away. However, he said that considering all the events unfolding at the time, he wasn’t sure whether Saric or someone else had ordered their arrest.
Testifying as a defense witness at this hearing, Hranislav Bojic said he saw two groups of armed men in Tetovo, near Zenica, on June 16, 1992.
“They were walking from Banlozi towards the town. The first group passed by, followed by another, taking three civilians – a boy, an elderly man and a young man, with them. They seemed spiritless, but I didn’t see any injuries on them. Their hands were tied up with rope. I recognized a man named Dzanan among the soldiers. I greeted him. I did not see the defendants,” Bojic said.
The trial will continue on November 24.
