The District Court in Doboj sentenced Ivica Perkovic, former member of the Croatian Defence Council, HVO, to five and a half years in prison for crimes against Serb civilians in the northern Bosnian town of Derventa.
Perkovic, former member of the 103rd Derventa Brigade of the Bosnian Croat forces, was found guilty of having beaten Zeljko Stajcic during April and May 1992 and told other HVO members to mistreat him.
Perkovic was also found guilty of having participated in the torture of Borko Trifunovic in the Yugoslav National Army, JNA, Center in Derventa, by “hitting him on his head with fists”.
“Before that he forced him to hold two lit candles in his hands, while threatening him by saying that ‘if the candles went out, his life would end too’,” the verdict says.
Perkovic, who lives in Croatia and defended himself while at liberty, did not attend the pronouncement of the verdict.
Although the Doboj District Prosecution requested that Perkovic be tried according to the Criminal Code of Bosnia and Herzegovina, the verdict has been pronounced according to the Criminal Code of the former Yugoslavia.
The presiding judge of the Trial Chamber, Hatidza Hodzic, explaind that the former Yugoslav code was in force when the crime was committed and more favourable for the indictee.
The parties have the right to file an appeal against the verdicts passed down by the Doboj District Court with the Supreme Court of Republika Srpska.
Timeline of events in the case against 13 former Serb fighters charged with committing war crimes in the villages of Cuska, Zahac, Ljubenic and Pavlac in Kosovo in 1999.