here - Humanitarian Law Center/Fond za humanitarno pravo

Analysis of proceedings
In the HLC’s opinion, this case was marked by the MUP’s efforts to deflect responsibility for this
crime away from their former high-ranking officials and by half-hearted prosecution efforts.
The TRZ accused Popović and Stojanović of aiding and abetting the commission of the crime.
The facts established during the trial suggest that taking the Bytyqi brothers from prison in
Prokuplje and bringing them to the training centre in Petrovo Selo where they were handed over
to some as yet unidentified members of the Serbian MUP and subsequently killed, was something
that could not have been done without the knowledge of senior officials of the Serbian MUP. It
follows that this was a well-organized action involving various individuals in the police line of
authority.
The accused indeed had a supporting role in the commission of this crime, and commanding
officers and direct perpetrators were not indicted. The TRZ failed to carefully look into the
responsibility of Goran Radosavljević a.k.a. ‘Guri’, who at the time of the event was the
commander of the training centre in Petrovo Selo. Although he was absent from the centre while
the Bytyqi brothers were there, given the position he held, he ought to have known who came to
the centre and when, on whose orders and how the mass grave in Petrovo Selo was created.
The Deputy Prosecutor assigned to the case said in his closing argument that he “regrets to say
that the Serbian MUP is not even today willing to offer accurate information on the perpetrators
of this crime” and that “the very same people who were involved in this crime are still with the
MUP, some of them were even promoted”. The HLC notes that the TRZ’ is bound by law to
prosecute perpetrators of crimes and not to voice its regret over the lack of willingness on the part
of the MUP to disclose information, because the TRZ has mechanisms to prevent the MUP from
doing so. 118 The unprofessional performance by the TRZ in this case is also reflected in the fact
that the TRZ amended the indictment three times after the Higher Court and Court of Appeal had
found it to be imprecise and contradictory.
There is a suggestion that this case was opened and tried purely for the purpose of offering some
sort of satisfaction to the United States government which had demanded that the murder of the
Bytyqi brothers, who were US citizens, be prosecuted. The final outcome of this trial, however, is
a mockery of justice, aimed at protecting high-ranking officers of the Serbian MUP from criminal
responsibility.
118 Article 7 of the Law on Organisation and Jurisdiction of Government Bodies in War Crimes Processing stipulates
that all government bodies and organisations are obliged, on the request of the TRZ, to submit any written document
or evidence that they posses, or in any other way provide information that may help in the identification of war
crimes perpetrators.
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