Beaten in Odzak

Bozidar Krsic told the Court that he was captured in Novi Grad village and taken to a school building in Odzak together with about 800 other men. As he said, women and children were taken to classrooms and then to home detention. At that time Krsic was less than 18 years old.

“I was guarded by military policemen, who had RH, the Republic of Croatia, marks. I heard from adults that Anto Golubovic was Manager and that Josip Tolic, Jurica Bozic, Ferid Halilovic were guards,” Krsic said, adding that guards behaved in an inhumane manner.

He said that indictee Josip Tolic personally beat him on his ears with his hand palms and on his chest with his legs, adding that he also suffered mental insulting.

The Defence of indictee Josip Tolic said that, in his previous statements from 1993 and 2007 witness Krsic had never mentioned having been hit by Tolic. The witness said that he did not have time and that nobody asked him about the indictee.

The witness said that detainee Drago Tomanovic died due to having been beaten.

“They had beaten him up prior to bringing him into the room. He was in bad shape, covered with blood and bruises. He was brought by Tolic and Golubovic. I am not sure if he cursed something or not, but they came back and beat him up again. They took him out of the hall, beat him and pushed him to the volleyball pole. The others then came in. Tolic took his handcuffs out and told them to tie him. He was beaten and hit by Tolic, Golubovic, Bozic and Halilovic,” Krsic said, adding that Tomanovic died during the night.

Defence attorney Rifat Konjic said that, according to the indictment, it was not Drago, but Rade Tomanovic. Konjic said that, in his statement given to the Public Safety Centre in Doboj in 1993, the witness did not mention this event and that, in another statement from 2007 he said that Ferid Halilovic and others beat a prisoner, whose name he did not know, up. Also, he said that, in a statement given to the Prosecution in 2013 the witness said that it was prisoner Tomanovic.

The Defence further said that, in his statement given to the Prosecution witness Krsic said that Golubovic, Bozic and Tolic left the hall and that Ferid Halilovic and some unknown members of the Croatian Defence Council, HVO, beat Tomanovic, who died later that night.

“It is true that they went out. It is true that Ferid Halilovic continued beating him. I do not know whose hit was critical,” Krsic said, adding that he stuck to what he said today and that he did not know any other way to explain the differences.
 
Krsic said that he was detained in Odzak for about two months and that he was transferred to Novi Grad and then to Bosanski Brod, from which he was taken to combat lines in order to dig trenches. He said that he was wounded while doing it.

Although he was not able to recognise indictee Tolic in the courtroom at the beginning of his testimony, Krsic said, at the end of direct examination, that Tolic was dressed in civil suit and that he was sitting across from him.

Tolic, former member of the 102nd Odzak Brigade of HVO, is charged with having participated in the abuse of Serb detainees in the Odzak and Bosanski Brod area from May to October 1992.  

Second State Prosecution witness Ranko Mrsic, who too was detained in Odzak and Bosanski Brod, said that he was beaten by indictee Tolic, who always picked him for some reason.

Mrsic said that he lost about 50 kilograms during his 45-day detention in Odzak. He too recognised the indictee in the courtroom.  

The trial is due to continue on February 20.