Bosnia Court Jails Serb Ex-Policeman for 1992 Rape

Bosnia’s state court on Friday jailed former Bosnian Serb policeman Dragan Janjic for raping a victim identified as B-1 in the police station in Miljevina near Foca in August 1992.

Under the first-instance verdict, he was jailed for seven years and ordered to pay the victims 15,000 Bosnian marks as compensation for non-material damage.

Her property and legal claim exceeding the awarded amount was rejected, and she was advised to realize it through a civil proceeding.

“The Chamber … found him guilty of committing rape in his capacity as member of police forces,” trial chamber chair Enida Hadziomerovic said.

She added that Janjic committed the rape as part of a wider, systematic Bosnian Serb attack on the Bosniak population in the Foca area of eastern Bosnia.

Hadziomerovic said the Chamber took account of the detailed testimony given by B-1, saying that other witnesses had confirmed it, and noting that one witness, B-2, had confirmed the injured party’s testimony in its entirety.

The Chamber said took into account the defendant’s testimony by which he tried to prove his alibi but did not consider it convincing.

Janjic was acquitted on two counts that charged him with unlawfully depriving people of their of liberty.

“As the witnesses did not say that Dragan Janjic was the person who participated in the abduction of those persons, the Chamber has not seen sufficient evidence that Janjic participated in the abduction of the persons as described in this count,” Hadziomerovic said.

When deciding the sentence, the Chamber did not find any aggravating circumstances. It said it considered the fact that Janjic had not been sentenced before a mitigating circumstance.

Under the verdict, the defendant is exempted from paying the costs of the criminal proceedings and his detention is extended. The parties have the right to appeal.