Witness Says Ilija Vukasinovic Participated in Attack and Execution of Civilians in Rogatica

The state prosecution has charged Ilija Vukasinovic, Radomir Markovic, Mile Kusic, Dragan Bozovic, Sasa Perkovic, Radomir Gluhovic, Pero Radovic and Milos Vukasinovic, all former members of the Socicka Company with the Rogaticka Brigade of the Bosnian Serb Army, with murders and robberies in the Rogatica area.

State prosecution witness Halima Pasic told the court she and other residents fled the village of Rakitnica in the municipality of Rogatica and went to Kramer Selo in the summer of 1992. She said they hid in the basement of one of the houses in the village.

“When the attack on the village started and the gunfire began, two or three soldiers entered the house and told us to come out. One of us said, ‘Ilija, what are you doing here?’ They were armed and dressed in military uniforms…They took us to a garage and then to Stjenice,” Pasic said.

Pasic said she knew Ilija Vukasinovic from before. He said he had visited her village prior to this incident.

“I recognized him. He had come to my house for a cup of coffee. My father-in-law told me his name was Ilija Vukasinovic. He may have been 25-30 years old,” Pasic said.

Pasic said the men stayed in front of the school building in Stjenice, while the women and children were ordered to go behind the building.

“I saw that the men were lying down, facing the ground and holding their hands on their backs. There were about 30 men…Later on I heard shooting, a burst of gunfire…I don’t know what happened after that, whether they were dead or alive,” she said.

The trial will continue on November 10.