Witness Describes State of Bodies Found in Trnovo Area

Edhem Godinjak, Medaris Saric and Mirko Bunoza have been charged with participating in a joint criminal enterprise with the aim of killing and detaining Serbs in villages in the Trnovo area.

According to the charges, Godinjak was the chief of the public safety station in Trnovo, Saric was the commander of the Territorial Defense Headquarters in Trnovo, while Bunoza was the commander of Croatian Defense Forces units.

Testifying at today’s hearing, Danilo Dzeletovic said he and his team examined bodies found in front of the public safety center in Trnovo. He said they determined the victims had been killed at least a year before, adding that the corpses were in various conditions and found at various locations. He said ten decapitated bodies were buried.

Dzeletovic said the local residents helped him and his team identify the victims. He said they gave them other information on how the victims died and the potential perpetrators. Dzeletovic said Serb prisoners had buried some of the bodies.

During cross-examination, Dzeletovic said he “didn’t check the information obtained from local residents, but some other services did so.”

Dzeletovic said about 50 reports were made, most of which pertained to civilian victims.

Dzeletovic said a kerchief was tied around the neck of one of the bodies, which had become swollen. A report on the body indicated the victim had been strangled.

Defendant Medaris Saric asked Dzeletovic how the report had reached that conclusion. Dzeletovic responded by saying that all indicators pointed to the victim being strangled, and that he agreed with the report’s assessment because of how swollen the body had become.

With regards to Edhem Godinjak, Dzeletovic said he was mentioned as the commander of a unit but didn’t know him personally. He said he had findings that indicated Godinjak helped a person whose wife had been killed by his soldiers.

Godinjak’s defense said none of the reports mentioned his name. Dzeletovic confirmed this, adding that he had never met him or seen any of his orders or decisions.

Dzeletovic said he also heard the name of Medaris Saric and the Croatian Defense Forces mentioned, but it was not significant for him.

Dzeletovic said a large number of the remains were found in open spaces and were exposed to the passage of time and animals. He said this made it more difficult to determine the real cause of death.

The trial will continue on January 19.