FLASH NEWS
Serbian armed group attacked Kosovo police, those accused of the attack in Banjska appear in court today
2025-04-17 09:30:49 / KOSOVA
The first hearing in the case of the attack in Banjska, against Vladimir Tolliq, Blagoje Spasojevic and Dushan Maksimovic, will be held at the Basic Court in Pristina on April 17.
The three defendants were arrested following the attack in Banjska, Zvecan, in September 2023, when an armed group of Serbs attacked the Kosovo Police and killed police officer Afrim Bunjaku. In the ensuing shootout, three more attackers were killed.
In September 2024, the Kosovo Special Prosecution Office filed indictments against 45 individuals for terrorism, terrorist financing, and serious criminal offenses, most of whom – including Milan Radoicic, who claimed responsibility for the attack in Banjska – are at large.
On October 9 last year, in the preparatory session, the prosecution requested that the trial also begin for the defendants who are not in Kosovo, but the defense lawyers emphasized that such a thing is not allowed by Kosovo laws.
Judge Arben Hoti requested a legal opinion from the Supreme Court on the interpretation of the law, which found that this issue is a "discretionary right" of the judge.
Such a decision has not yet been made.
Otherwise, in the preparatory session of October 9, 2024, the two defendants, Vladimir Tolic and Blagoje Spasojevic, refused to plead guilty at this stage of the process, while Dusan Maksimovic pleaded not guilty.
Milan Radoicic, former deputy leader of the Serbian List – the largest Serb party in Kosovo that has the support of official Belgrade – claimed responsibility for the armed attack in Banjska. He and most of the members of the armed group are believed to be at large in Serbia.
What does the indictment contain?
The Kosovo Special Prosecution Office, among other things, charges the defendants in the Banjska case with terrorist acts and acts against the constitutional order and security of Kosovo.
The prosecutor in the case, Naim Abazi, previously stated that the defendants had various roles within the criminal group, "from organizing and directing terrorist activities, to financing and laundering money."
The indictment states that this group, through the use of violence with heavy weapons, attempted to "separate the northern part of the territory of the Republic of Kosovo, namely the municipalities inhabited by a Serb majority, and to annex this part of the territory to the Republic of Serbia."
Milan Radoićić has been identified as the leader of this group, who is said to have played an important role in coordinating the attack and criminal activities.
Radoicic is blacklisted by the United States and the United Kingdom for links to international organized crime and corruption.
In Kosovo, he is also linked to the murder of a Serbian opposition politician, as well as the intimidation of witnesses in a trial over several illegal constructions.
In the indictment, the Prosecution cites 34 files of evidence, including video recordings, analyses of electronic devices, various responses from Luxembourg, Bosnia and Herzegovina, banks and various institutions, witness statements, etc.
Kosovo authorities describe the attack in Banjska as a terrorist act and accuse Serbia of being behind it.
On the other hand, Serbia has denied any involvement in the attack in Banjska, while Serbian President Aleksandar Vučić has emphasized that for Belgrade this attack is not terrorist, but that it is being investigated.
The international community has strongly condemned the attack in Banjska and has demanded that those responsible be brought to justice./ REL
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