Bosnia Acquits Soldier of Abusing Bosniak Prisoners

The Bosnian state court on Friday acquitted former Bosnian Serb Army soldier Nenad Przulj of being responsible for the unlawful detention, abuse and disappearance of six Bosniak detainees who are still listed as missing.

The court said that although the defence did not deny that Przulj was a member of the Bosnian Serb Army’s Second Romanijska Brigade, the prosecution had not proved that Przulj was the manager of the detention facility in the village of Cavarine.

“The chamber has not been able to determine, beyond reasonable doubt, that the defendant undertook the actions with which he is charged. First of all, it has not been able to determine that he performed the function of the manager of the detention facility in Cavarine,” said presiding judge Zoran Bozic.

He said there was no doubt that the detainees who were held in Cavarine, were kept in inhumane conditions and beaten up, but the court had not established that the defendant was responsible for this.

Also on Friday, the state court acquitted Mitar and Rade Vlasenko and Drago Koncar of crimes against humanity in the Prijedor area.

The Vlasenkos and Koncar were acquitted of participating in a search of Bosniak houses in Kozarac in May 1992 and taking a group of civilians to a house where the male captives were abused and then transferred to the Omarska, Trnopolje and Keraterm detention camps.

All three of them were also acquitted of killing eight civilians during a search in Kozarac in June 1992.

Rade Vlasenko was further acquitted of taking two Bosniak detainees from the Trnopolje camp to do forced labour and killing one of them, along with an accomplice.

Both the verdicts can be appealed.