prijava
SARAJEVO, October 26 (FENA) - Tonćo Rajič, a former member of the Croat Defense Council (HVO), was sentenced to two years in prison for mistreating a civilian prisoner at Dretelj detention camp near Čapljina in August 1992.
The appeals chamber of the BiH Court on Friday convicted former HVO fighter Tonćo Rajič, who was a guard at the Dretelj camp during wartime, and jailed him for two years.
The verdict said that in August 1992, Rajic insulted and mistreated one female prisoner, then cocked an automatic rifle with the intention of killing her, refusing an order to drop the weapon.
His action caused severe mental distress and suffering to the victim, the court found.
Explaining the judgment, presiding judge Redžib Begić said the victim’s testimony was corroborated by another witness.
“[The victim] recognized the defendant during the investigation, she used to see him at Dretelj and heard his full name from other people,” Begić said.
He added that the court determined that the victim neither participated in hostilities nor belonged to any forces during the conflict, so had the status of a civilian.
Under a first-instance verdict passed down in November 2017, Rajic was acquitted of committing crimes at Dretelj, but the appeals chamber quashed the verdict and ordered a retrial.
He originally stood trial with another former detention camp guard, Ivan Medic, who the appeals chamber sentenced to a composite sentence of 12 years in prison for crimes at Dretelj.
The verdict is subject to an appeal, BIRN reports.
(FENA) S. R.
