Nikola Štedul
Encyclopedia
Nikola Štedul is a Croatian emigrant who was the target of an attempted assassination in Kirkcaldy
, Scotland
in 1988. Štedul had been the president the Croatian Statehood Movement, campaigning for Croatian independence from Yugoslavia.
The assassin Vinko Sindičić arrived in Britain with a Swiss passport. He received the gun and silencer he used for the murder attempt from the Yugoslav embassy. Early on the morning of October 20, 1988, Štedul, who was walking his dog, was shot at four times by Sindičić. Štedul survived the shooting, while Sindičić was arrested at Heathrow Airport. The Yugoslav embassy subsequently provided the alibi that Sindičić was in the country watching the Scotland
-Yugoslavia
football match on October 19. However, residue from the firearm was found on Sindičić's skin, and after an eleven day trial he was found guilty of attempted murder and sentenced to 15 years in jail.
The assassination attempt was subject of a 1994 movie by Scottish Television
titled The Yugoslav Hitman.
Kirkcaldy
Kirkcaldy is a town and former royal burgh in Fife, on the east coast of Scotland. The town lies on a shallow bay on the northern shore of the Firth of Forth; SSE of Glenrothes, ENE of Dunfermline, WSW of Dundee and NNE of Edinburgh...
, Scotland
Scotland
Scotland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Occupying the northern third of the island of Great Britain, it shares a border with England to the south and is bounded by the North Sea to the east, the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, and the North Channel and Irish Sea to the...
in 1988. Štedul had been the president the Croatian Statehood Movement, campaigning for Croatian independence from Yugoslavia.
The assassin Vinko Sindičić arrived in Britain with a Swiss passport. He received the gun and silencer he used for the murder attempt from the Yugoslav embassy. Early on the morning of October 20, 1988, Štedul, who was walking his dog, was shot at four times by Sindičić. Štedul survived the shooting, while Sindičić was arrested at Heathrow Airport. The Yugoslav embassy subsequently provided the alibi that Sindičić was in the country watching the Scotland
Scotland national football team
The Scotland national football team represents Scotland in international football and is controlled by the Scottish Football Association. Scotland are the joint oldest national football team in the world, alongside England, whom they played in the world's first international football match in 1872...
-Yugoslavia
Yugoslavia national football team
The Yugoslavia national football team represented the Kingdom of Yugoslavia and the Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia in association football. It enjoyed a modicum of success in international competition. In 1992, during the Yugoslav wars, the team was suspended from international...
football match on October 19. However, residue from the firearm was found on Sindičić's skin, and after an eleven day trial he was found guilty of attempted murder and sentenced to 15 years in jail.
The assassination attempt was subject of a 1994 movie by Scottish Television
Scottish Television
Scottish Television is Scotland's largest ITV franchisee, and has held the ITV franchise for Central Scotland since 31 August 1957. It is the second oldest ITV franchisee still active...
titled The Yugoslav Hitman.