ŠEHOVAC: REPUBLIC PROSECUTOR'S OFFICE TO TAKE OVER ATTEMPTED MURDER CASES

PALE, AUGUST 5 /SRNA/ – Branimir Šehovac, chief of the Istočno Sarajevo Police Administration, has said today that the case concerning the attempted murders in Istočno Novo Sarajevo will be taken over by the Republika Srpska Republic Prosecutor's Office, while the investigation will continue.

Šehovac stated at a press conference in Pale that Aleksandar Nikolić was handed over yesterday to the District Public Prosecutor's Office Istočno Sarajevo, adding that the conflict between the criminal groups headed by Đorđe Ždrale and Darko Elez has been ongoing since January 2006. "During their confrontations, citizens have on many occasions been exposed to immediate danger, and innocent people who happened to be at the scenes of these clashes have also lost their lives," Šehovac said, adding that while it is impossible to predict when criminal groups will clash, such incidents can be prevented. He called on judicial institutions in Republika Srpska and BiH to give priority to cases related to the conflict between these groups in order to prevent further violence. The Istočno Sarajevo police chief also recalled that, since Đorđe Ždrale's release from prison, four criminal reports have been filed against him, some he was acquitted of, fined in others, while for certain criminal offenses no proceedings were initiated at all. Šehovac added that the Republika Srpska Directorate for Serious and Organised Crime submitted a criminal report against Darko Elez and several other individuals to the Prosecutor's Office of BiH back in 2022, but that the case has seen no outcome. "There are also cases against individuals connected to them that have been pending for more than five years," Šehovac said. He further noted that Kosta Pandurević, who was wounded on Sunday, August 2, had also previously been charged with the criminal offense of attempted murder but was acquitted. "A criminal report was also filed against Davor Dabić, the late Branislav Janjić and several other individuals for the unauthorized production and trafficking of narcotics. The proceedings are still ongoing, while the case against the late Branislav Janjić will, of course, be discontinued," Šehovac said.