Ibarska magistrala assassination
Encyclopedia
The Ibar highway assassination attempt refers to the events of October 3, 1999 when active members of the Yugoslav state security's Special Operations Unit (JSO) attempted to murder Vuk Drašković
on the Ibar highway by slamming a truck full of sand into his two-car motorcade. Their intention was to make it appear as though it were a traffic accident.
Instead of eliminating Drašković, who managed to survive the horrific crash, they ended up killing four of his associates: high-ranking SPO
member Veselin Bošković (who was also Drašković's brother-in-law), along with three bodyguards - Zvonko Osmajlić, Vušur "Vučko" Rakočević, and Dragan Vušurević.
.
The original plan was to travel in two cars with Drašković, his wife Danica, SPO federal MP
Gordana Aničić, and Drašković's personal driver Bane in the jeep followed by the three bodyguards in the black BMW 520
right behind. However, immediately before setting off, Veselin Bošković, Drašković's brother-in-law, showed up in his Audi 8
in front of the house and joined the group. He also requested that Vuk Drašković come over to his car, so they can ride together, which Drašković did.
Thus, the modified driving arrangement was: jeep with Danica, Gordana, and driver Bane first, followed by Audi with Bošković and Drašković, and finally three bodyguards Osmajlić, Rakočević, and Vušurević in the BMW just behind. Bošković was driving cautiously, and quickly gave up trying to keep up with the jeep driven by Bane that pulled way ahead and out of sight. The bodyguards in the BMW were right behind Bošković and Drašković, throughout.
Around fifteen minutes past noon, as the two cars were driving down Ibar Highway through the municipal territory of Petka village near Lazarevac
, a huge crash occurred. A green-coloured truck traveling in the opposite direction, toward Belgrade, abruptly swerved left into oncoming traffic five meters before the two cars, plowing into and over them. It hit the first car (Audi) on the driver's side, bouncing it into the corn field, and then slammed into the second car (BMW) with full force. The BMW went underneath the truck and exploded, incinerating the three people inside it.
The very next day, on Monday, Drašković himself called it a "clear attempt on my life".
Other political factors in Serbia at the time, also reacted on the same day. Opposition coalition Alliance for Changes (SZP) called on the Serbian police authorities to "investigate every single detail of the crash". Speaking as a SZP representative, Democratic Party
president Zoran Đinđić said that the traffic accident near Lazarevac looks suspicious. He also relayed his expectation about the authorities "providing an immediate and convincing explanation of the event because if that doesn't happen, there will be suspicions that something abnormal occurred". Democratic Party of Serbia
(DSS) vice president Milorad Jovanović said that "it's too early to discuss the reasons for this tragedy since the police didn't yet provide all the information". The release by the New Democracy political party was the strongest: it clearly referred to the event as an "assassination attempt on Drašković" and strongly condemned it.
On Tuesday, October 5, Veselin Bošković was buried at Topčider cemetery in Belgrade. Many opposition leaders came to the funeral, however no one from the ruling coalition showed up. Eulogizing his brother-in-law, Drašković gave an impassioned speech:
The following day, Wednesday, October 6, Zvonko Osmajlić, Vučko Rakočević, and Dragan Vušurović were being laid to rest at the same cemetery, and Drašković delivered another impassioned eulogy:
, and Milan Radonjić.
The verdict in what turned out to be only the first trial (presided by judge Miroslav Cvetković) was delivered on January 30, 2003. The immediate assassins Nenad Bujošević and Nenad Ilić got 15 years each, State Security chief Radomir Marković received 7 years, while State Security Belgrade branch chief Milan Radonjić was found not guilty of the charges.http://www.danas.rs/20030201/hronika1.htm
The remaining two individuals on the indictment list were absolved of any responsibility: Milan Radonjić (former State Security's Belgrade branch chief) and Branko Djurić (former Police chief in Belgrade).
The sentence was made official on November 23, 2005, almost 5 months after it was delivered, because presiding judge Bojan Mišić took an unusually long amount of time to write it up. This led to veiled public accusations of time wasting with intent of sabotaging the appeals process which has a 1-year window from the date of verdict being delivered, but can only start once the verdict is official. By taking almost 5 months to make the verdict official judge Mišić effectively made that time period unavailable for appeals, leaving only 7 months for the appeals instead of a full year.
On May 16, 2006, the supreme Court made its decision public - it fully annulled the verdict and ordered a full re-trial for the second time.
The prison detentions for all of the accused were extended.
The verdict was delivered on February 16, 2007. It resulted in the following sentences:
The remaining two individuals on the indictment list were again absolved of responsibility: Milan Radonjić (former State Security's Belgrade branch chief) and Branko Djurić (former Police chief in Belgrade).
On appeal, the Supreme Court made a decision that the case should be tried (fourth trial) in front of the Supreme Court rather than sending it back to the District Court.
On June 19, 2008, the Supreme Court delivered a verdict sentencing:
to 40 years for the murder of 4 men and the attempted murder of Vuk Drašković.
Nenad Bujošević got 35 years for the same crime, while Duško Maričić and Leonid Milivojević got 30 years.
Furthermore, the Supreme Court gave out sentences for hiding the evidence:
Branko Đurić and Milan Radonjić were once again absolved of responsibility due to lack of any evidence against them.
This sentence was final for Kertes, Mijailović, and Dinić while all others had a right to appeal it and did so.
Vuk Draškovic
Vuk Drašković , leader of the Serbian Renewal Movement, is a Serbian politician who served as the Deputy Prime Minister of Yugoslavia and the Minister of Foreign Affairs of State Union of Serbia and Montenegro and Serbia.He graduated from the University of Belgrade's Law School in 1968...
on the Ibar highway by slamming a truck full of sand into his two-car motorcade. Their intention was to make it appear as though it were a traffic accident.
Instead of eliminating Drašković, who managed to survive the horrific crash, they ended up killing four of his associates: high-ranking SPO
Serbian Renewal Movement
The Serbian Renewal Movement is a political party in Serbia.It was founded in 1990.In 1997 a dissident group abandoned the party and formed New Serbia....
member Veselin Bošković (who was also Drašković's brother-in-law), along with three bodyguards - Zvonko Osmajlić, Vušur "Vučko" Rakočević, and Dragan Vušurević.
Event
On Sunday, October 3, 1999, in the early afternoon hours, Drašković and his entourage were traveling in three cars southbound on Ibar Highway. The trip began in front of Drašković's house in Belgrade and the destination was Ravna GoraRavna Gora, Serbia
Ravna Gora is a highland in central Serbia, at the mountain of Suvobor. It is renowned as the birthplace of the modern Chetnik movement under the leadership of Dragoljub Mihailović in 1941. Ravna Gora was the site of a celebration marking the 50th anniversary of VE day in 1995. Among others, the...
.
The original plan was to travel in two cars with Drašković, his wife Danica, SPO federal MP
Member of Parliament
A Member of Parliament is a representative of the voters to a :parliament. In many countries with bicameral parliaments, the term applies specifically to members of the lower house, as upper houses often have a different title, such as senate, and thus also have different titles for its members,...
Gordana Aničić, and Drašković's personal driver Bane in the jeep followed by the three bodyguards in the black BMW 520
BMW 5 Series
The BMW 5 Series is a mid-size / executive car manufactured by BMW since 1972. The car, now in its sixth generation, is sold in sedan and touring body styles....
right behind. However, immediately before setting off, Veselin Bošković, Drašković's brother-in-law, showed up in his Audi 8
Audi A3
The Audi A3 is a small family car produced by the German automaker Audi since 1996. Two generations of A3 exist, both based on the Volkswagen Group A platform, which they share with several other models such as the Audi TT, Volkswagen Golf, Volkswagen Caddy and Volkswagen Touran as well as SEAT...
in front of the house and joined the group. He also requested that Vuk Drašković come over to his car, so they can ride together, which Drašković did.
Thus, the modified driving arrangement was: jeep with Danica, Gordana, and driver Bane first, followed by Audi with Bošković and Drašković, and finally three bodyguards Osmajlić, Rakočević, and Vušurević in the BMW just behind. Bošković was driving cautiously, and quickly gave up trying to keep up with the jeep driven by Bane that pulled way ahead and out of sight. The bodyguards in the BMW were right behind Bošković and Drašković, throughout.
Around fifteen minutes past noon, as the two cars were driving down Ibar Highway through the municipal territory of Petka village near Lazarevac
Lazarevac
Lazarevac is a town and municipality located in Serbia at 44.22° North, 20.15° East. Its name stems from name of medieval Prince Lazar Hrebeljanovic. In 2002 the town has total population of 23,551. Lazarevac is one of Belgrade's 17 municipalities....
, a huge crash occurred. A green-coloured truck traveling in the opposite direction, toward Belgrade, abruptly swerved left into oncoming traffic five meters before the two cars, plowing into and over them. It hit the first car (Audi) on the driver's side, bouncing it into the corn field, and then slammed into the second car (BMW) with full force. The BMW went underneath the truck and exploded, incinerating the three people inside it.
Reaction
Initially reported in Sunday bulletins as a traffic accident with four casualties, it soon became clear that there was much more to the crash.The very next day, on Monday, Drašković himself called it a "clear attempt on my life".
Other political factors in Serbia at the time, also reacted on the same day. Opposition coalition Alliance for Changes (SZP) called on the Serbian police authorities to "investigate every single detail of the crash". Speaking as a SZP representative, Democratic Party
Democratic Party (Serbia)
The Democratic Party is a political party in Serbia. It is described as a social liberal or social democratic party.-Pre-war history:The Democratic Party was established on 16 February 1919 from unification of Sarajevo parties independent radicals, progressives, liberals and the Serbian part of...
president Zoran Đinđić said that the traffic accident near Lazarevac looks suspicious. He also relayed his expectation about the authorities "providing an immediate and convincing explanation of the event because if that doesn't happen, there will be suspicions that something abnormal occurred". Democratic Party of Serbia
Democratic Party of Serbia
The Democratic Party of Serbia is a political party in Serbia.-Foundation:The Democratic Party of Serbia was founded when a faction of the Democratic Party that supported its involvement in the Democratic Movement of Serbia split from the party and formed their own in 1992.Soon after the March...
(DSS) vice president Milorad Jovanović said that "it's too early to discuss the reasons for this tragedy since the police didn't yet provide all the information". The release by the New Democracy political party was the strongest: it clearly referred to the event as an "assassination attempt on Drašković" and strongly condemned it.
On Tuesday, October 5, Veselin Bošković was buried at Topčider cemetery in Belgrade. Many opposition leaders came to the funeral, however no one from the ruling coalition showed up. Eulogizing his brother-in-law, Drašković gave an impassioned speech:
The following day, Wednesday, October 6, Zvonko Osmajlić, Vučko Rakočević, and Dragan Vušurović were being laid to rest at the same cemetery, and Drašković delivered another impassioned eulogy:
Trial (2002-2003)
The trial started with four individuals on the indictment list: Nenad Bujošević, Nenad Ilić, Radomir MarkovićRadomir Markovic
Radomir "Rade" Marković was the head of the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia's State Security Service from 1998 to 2001...
, and Milan Radonjić.
The verdict in what turned out to be only the first trial (presided by judge Miroslav Cvetković) was delivered on January 30, 2003. The immediate assassins Nenad Bujošević and Nenad Ilić got 15 years each, State Security chief Radomir Marković received 7 years, while State Security Belgrade branch chief Milan Radonjić was found not guilty of the charges.http://www.danas.rs/20030201/hronika1.htm
Supreme Court appeal
Above verdict was subsequently annulled before the Supreme Court, and re-trial was ordered.Repeat trial (2005)
The re-trial with expanded indictment list that now also included 8 more individuals (Milorad Ulemek, Mihalj Kertes, Branko Djurić, Dragiša Dinić, Vidan Mijailović, and 3 more JSO members) wrapped up on June 29, 2005 in Belgrade District Court. It resulted in first degree sentences for the following individuals:- Milorad UlemekMilorad UlemekMilorad "Legija" Ulemek , also known as Milorad Luković is a former commander of the Serbian secret police special unit, the Red Berets , convicted of the assassinations of Serbian Prime Minister Zoran Djindjic and former Serbian President Ivan Stambolic and organiser of the attempted murder of the...
(former JSO commander), received 15 years for taking part in the assassination. - five other JSO members (Nenad Ilić, Nenad Bujošević, Duško Maričić, Branko Berček, and Leonid Milivojević) also received 15 years each for taking part in the assassination.
- Radomir MarkovićRadomir MarkovicRadomir "Rade" Marković was the head of the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia's State Security Service from 1998 to 2001...
(former Serbian State Security Service chief), received 10 years for helping those that directly carried out the crime by aiding them after they committed it. He was also indictedIndictmentAn indictment , in the common-law legal system, is a formal accusation that a person has committed a crime. In jurisdictions that maintain the concept of felonies, the serious criminal offence is a felony; jurisdictions that lack the concept of felonies often use that of an indictable offence—an...
with a much more serious charge of organizing the assassination, but the court found him not guilty of that. - Mihalj KertesMihalj KertesMihalj Kertes, nicknamed "Braca" or "Bracika", was a close associate and man of trust of Slobodan Milošević, Serbian leader during 1990s...
(former Federal Customs director), received 3 years also for aiding the immediate executioners after the crime was committed. - Dragiša Dinić (former chief of Serbian Interior Ministry traffic police), received 2 years.
- Vidan Mijailović (member of Serbian Interior Ministry traffic police), received 1 year.
The remaining two individuals on the indictment list were absolved of any responsibility: Milan Radonjić (former State Security's Belgrade branch chief) and Branko Djurić (former Police chief in Belgrade).
The sentence was made official on November 23, 2005, almost 5 months after it was delivered, because presiding judge Bojan Mišić took an unusually long amount of time to write it up. This led to veiled public accusations of time wasting with intent of sabotaging the appeals process which has a 1-year window from the date of verdict being delivered, but can only start once the verdict is official. By taking almost 5 months to make the verdict official judge Mišić effectively made that time period unavailable for appeals, leaving only 7 months for the appeals instead of a full year.
Supreme Court appeals
Everyone involved with the case (public prosecutor, lawyers, and the accused) appealed the verdict, and the case went before the Supreme Court again between March 27 and March 31, 2006. The Supreme Court's 5-judge council had three options in regards to the district court verdict: upholding the verdict, modifying the verdict, or ordering a partial/full re-trial by partially/fully annulling the verdict.On May 16, 2006, the supreme Court made its decision public - it fully annulled the verdict and ordered a full re-trial for the second time.
The prison detentions for all of the accused were extended.
Third trial (2006-2007)
The third trial, again under the presiding judge Bojan Mišić wrapped up on February 14, 2007.The verdict was delivered on February 16, 2007. It resulted in the following sentences:
- Milorad UlemekMilorad UlemekMilorad "Legija" Ulemek , also known as Milorad Luković is a former commander of the Serbian secret police special unit, the Red Berets , convicted of the assassinations of Serbian Prime Minister Zoran Djindjic and former Serbian President Ivan Stambolic and organiser of the attempted murder of the...
(former JSO commander), received 15 years for taking part in the assassination. - Nenad Ilić, JSO member and the driver of the truck also received 15 years.
- 4 other JSO members (Nenad Bujošević, Duško Maričić, Branko Berček, and Leonid Milivojević) all received 14 years each for taking part in the assassination.
- Radomir MarkovićRadomir MarkovicRadomir "Rade" Marković was the head of the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia's State Security Service from 1998 to 2001...
(former Serbian State Security Service chief), received 10 years for helping those that directly carried out the crime by aiding them after they committed it. - Mihalj Kertes (former Federal Customs director), received 2 and a half years for aiding the immediate executioners after the crime was committed.
- Dragiša Dinić (former chief of Serbian Interior Ministry traffic police), received 19 months.
- Vidan Mijailović (member of Serbian Interior Ministry traffic police), received 9 months.
The remaining two individuals on the indictment list were again absolved of responsibility: Milan Radonjić (former State Security's Belgrade branch chief) and Branko Djurić (former Police chief in Belgrade).
On appeal, the Supreme Court made a decision that the case should be tried (fourth trial) in front of the Supreme Court rather than sending it back to the District Court.
Fourth trial (2008)
On March 3, 2008, the fourth trial in Ibarska magistrala case opened - this time in front of the Serbian Supreme Court's five-person council presided over by judge Dragomir Milojević. According to the presiding judge the case was to be heard again from beginning to end with old evidence as well as new evidence that surfaced in the meantime.On June 19, 2008, the Supreme Court delivered a verdict sentencing:
- Rade Marković,
- Milorad Ulemek,
- Branko Berček, and
- Nenad Ilić
to 40 years for the murder of 4 men and the attempted murder of Vuk Drašković.
Nenad Bujošević got 35 years for the same crime, while Duško Maričić and Leonid Milivojević got 30 years.
Furthermore, the Supreme Court gave out sentences for hiding the evidence:
- Mihalj Kertes - 18 months,
- Dragiša Dinić - 10 months, and
- Vidan Mijailović - 6 months.
Branko Đurić and Milan Radonjić were once again absolved of responsibility due to lack of any evidence against them.
This sentence was final for Kertes, Mijailović, and Dinić while all others had a right to appeal it and did so.
Appeal
The supreme court met in late October 2009 to discuss their appeals. On December 21, 2009, the appeal verdict was announced and it confirmed all of the sentences for all accused, meaning that their sentences now became final.External links
- Draskovic attends crash victim's funeral, BBC, October 5, 1999
- Ibarska magistrala, treći put: Profesionalni kukavičluk, VremeVremeVreme is a weekly newsmagazine based in Belgrade, Serbia.After being prepared for seven months throughout 1990 by liberal Serbian intellectuals dissatisfied with the regime's control of the media, its first issue came out on October 29, 1990. Most of its original staff were journalists from...
, May 25, 2006 - Ulemeku 15, Markoviću osam godina za Ibarsku, MTS Mondo, February 16, 2007