Former aide to Serbia’s Milosevic appeals to have conflict crimes conviction overturned

THE HAGUE (Reuters) – The previous head of Serbia’s state safety service ought to have his conflict crimes conviction for financing and equipping Serb militias in Bosnia through the 1992-95 conflict overturned, his legal professionals argued on Tuesday, saying he was unaware of the crimes.

The case in opposition to Jovica Stanisic and his subordinate Franko “Frenki” Simatovic is the ultimate case earlier than the U.N. tribunal in The Hague courting from the Balkan wars that erupted with the break up of the previous Yugoslavia, and has dragged on for practically 20 years.

Stanisic was sentenced to 12 years for aiding and abetting crimes dedicated by Serb paramilitary teams in Bosanski Samac.

“Stanisic was nowhere close to the scene (of the crimes) and was not proven to keep in touch with the direct perpetrators,” his lawyer Wayne Jordash mentioned.

Each Stanisic and Simatovic have appealed their conviction and sentence and requested for acquittal.

The prosecution additionally filed an attraction, asking for the boys to be moreover convicted of aiding and abetting crimes dedicated by Serb paramilitary teams in different areas of Bosnia. Prosecutors will define their case in court docket on Wednesday.

The Stanisic and Simatovic judgment in 2021 marked the primary time Serbian state officers have been convicted for crimes dedicated on the bottom in neighbouring Bosnia.

Prosecutors had argued the boys had been a direct hyperlink between former Yugoslav President Slobodan Milosevic’s authorities in Serbia and crimes dedicated through the wars in Bosnia and Croatia that left over 100,000 useless and over 1,000,000 individuals displaced.

Milosevic died in his cell in 2006 whereas on trial for genocide and crimes in opposition to humanity.

(Reporting by Stephanie van den Berg; Enhancing by Alexandra Hudson)