The higher public prosecution is charging three defendants with violent behavior at a public meeting held in memory of the victims of the fall of the canopy in Novi Sad in front of the Faculty of Dramatic Arts. They were accused of physical attacks and threats, and the court was proposed to impose suspended prison sentences and monetary sanctions.
Higher public prosecution in Belgrade submitted an indictment to the High Court in Belgrade against three defendants due to reasonable suspicion that they committed the criminal offense Violent behavior at a sports event or public gathering on November 22, 2024 during the blockade of the road in Bulevar umetnosti Street, in front of the Faculty of Dramatic Arts (FDU).
MK, MA and IS are included in the indictment. Evidence actions in this case were also conducted against AJ and DK, but considering that the reported offense is not a criminal offense that is prosecuted ex officio, which will be analyzed in detail in the following text in the interest of the public, the prosecution made a decision to dismiss the criminal charges against them, with the fact that motions will be filed against both of them to initiate misdemeanor proceedings for the offense of Insulting, using violence, threatening or fighting from Article 9, paragraph 2. of the Law on Public Order and Peace.
The injured party and their attorneys have the right to file an objection to the decision on the dismissal of the criminal complaint to the Appellate Public Prosecutor's Office in Belgrade within 8 days from the date of receipt of this decision.
With the indictment, the prosecution suggested to the court that the defendants MK, MA and IS be found guilty of the above-mentioned criminal offense and sentence them to conditional sentences of 1 year in prison with a probationary period of 3 years and fines in the amount of 100.000 dinars each, according to the statement of the Prosecution.
None of the defendants have been convicted before.
What happened?
There is a justified suspicion that on November 22, 2024, in the period from 11:52 to 12:07 in the Boulevard of the Arts, in the immediate vicinity of the FDU building, while a public meeting dedicated to the victims of the fall of the canopy at the Railway Station in Novi Sad on November 1, 2024 was being held on the street, the defendants MK and MA physically attacked the participants of the public meeting, and the defendant IS committed violence at the public meeting.
MK, together with NN persons, approached the injured NT and repeatedly hit him with clenched fists in the area of the face and body and inflicted minor physical injuries on him.
MA repeatedly hit the participants of the meeting with a closed dark blue umbrella, the injured MS on the fist of the right hand and the injured RR on the right hand in the area of the wrist.
IS swung his fist clenched into a fist at the participants of the meeting, namely at the injured RR and at the injured NT and sent him several verbal threats, while he addressed the injured UN with insulting words, and tried to push his way through the "living wall" that the witnesses, employees of the FDU MS and JK, and the actors MG and MK as well as other citizens had made with their bodies.
The justified suspicion that MK committed the criminal offense charged in the indictment comes from the videos showing him hitting a student on the head, the victim NT, who stated in his testimony that he was sure that the defendant MK hit him together with three other perpetrators.
NT submitted to the prosecution the medical documentation from the Emergency Center, according to which he suffered minor injuries.
In his testimony, MK also accused the eyewitness of the event, witness MG
In his testimony, the defendant MK did not dispute the physical contact with NT, but claimed that NT attacked him first and tried to hit him, and that he then grabbed NT with a wrestling grip and pushed him off the roadway, and that he was trying to dodge his blows.
In relation to MA, the justified suspicion that she committed the aforementioned criminal offense stems from video recordings showing her hitting individual participants of the rally with a closed umbrella, recording them on the phone and saying something to them. Also, all victims and witnesses mentioned the defendant in their statements.
Participant of the meeting, professor, injured MS stated in his testimony that the defendant hit him twice on the head and on the right hand, and that he suffered a slight physical injury on the middle finger, for which he went to the doctor (at the Emergency Center) two days later, but he could not find a medical report, and he promised to look for it and submit it later.
In her testimony, the injured RR stated that the defendant also hit her with an umbrella, but that it is not visible on the videos owned by the prosecution, but on another video.
In her defense, the defendant said that she was the first to be attacked and that she was the first to be spat on by a young man, and that she only hit him once with an umbrella.
Reasonable suspicion that IS committed a crime stems from video footage and testimony from rally participants who claimed it was trying to break through a "living wall" that professors and actors had built with their bodies to prevent attackers from attacking the students.
In her testimony, RR stated that IS was getting in her face, standing in front of her, while NT claimed that the defendant ran into him to hit him, but that he did not succeed, and that he threatened to beat him.
The victim UN stated that the defendant insulted her and cursed her, while the victim MS also testified about the curses uttered by the defendant, and professors JK and MK also testified in a similar way.
MG testified that the defendant repeatedly swung his fist at the students, but that he did not manage to hit them because there was no space, while MK stated that the defendant violently hit the participants of the meeting, and that he even ran into the girls.
Dismissed criminal charges against two people
The criminal complaint against AJ and DK was dismissed because the reported offense is not a criminal offense for which they are prosecuted ex officio.
The videos do not show AJ committing violence against anyone.
In addition, from the testimony of the witnesses and the injured parties, it appears that they mention him only in the context that he was in the company of other perpetrators of the crime, with the exception of the injured MS who stated that AJ tried to hit him in the head with his fist, which is why a motion to initiate misdemeanor proceedings will be filed against him due to the above-mentioned offense.
For DK, it follows from the testimony of the witness MK that he calmed down the situation, while none of the questioned witnesses and injured parties accuse him of wanting to hit someone, which is also confirmed by the video recordings.
The witness JK stated in her testimony that DK shouted at her and insulted the participants of the meeting, and MS that he pulled one of the participants by the clothes, which is why a motion will be filed against him to initiate misdemeanor proceedings for the above-mentioned offense, according to the statement of the Prosecutor's Office.
On December 12, the Higher Public Prosecutor's Office took over from the Third Basic Public Prosecutor's Office the criminal complaint filed on December 2 by the dean of the Faculty of Dramatic Arts against persons who attacked students, employees and journalists during a rally in front of that faculty.
In Užice, they protested while waiting for tomorrow's big rally to which Valjevci and the rest of Serbia are coming, in Novi Sad they showed the guests of Exit what is happening here, and in Nova Pazova they changed the course with a protest circle
The Rebellious University and the Free Universities of Serbia requested the dismissal of Minister of Education Dejan Vuk Stanković because he works against the University, and SRCE - Prime Minister Đur Macut because he allows President Vučić to order his ministers
Instead of only going to the Ušće roundabout, the column that started from the Faculty of Dramatic Arts continued towards the Branko Bridge and blocked it.
Students of the Faculty of Law in the blockade organized a public address, and students of the Faculty of Dramatic Arts organized a walk to the Ušće roundabout, but in the process it was decided to go to the Branko bridge
Do the parts of today's sermon by Patriarch Porfiri, the speech at the protest in Užice by the priest Milić Dragović, and the call of the Eparchy of Žička to the representatives of the authorities not to forget to protect the people, hint at the new attitude of the SPC towards the authorities
If we are neutral while students are being imprisoned, girls and boys are being beaten for God's justice, democracy is being suppressed, dissenters are being dehumanized, corruption is continuing that kills and many other evil things are being done - then nothing
Serbia is not ready for fires, storms and floods, but President Aleksandar Vučić is ready to turn everything into propaganda
A policeman and a policewoman were filmed pulling a student's hair in an attempt to extort her. It is a classic example of torture, a gross violation of the law for which they would have to bear the consequences
The archive of the weekly Vreme includes all our digital editions, since the very beginning of our work. All issues can be downloaded in PDF format, by purchasing the digital edition, or you can read all available texts from the selected issue.
See all
