The Bosnian state court has upheld a verdict sentencing Milomir Djuricic and Vukadin Spasojevic to a total of 16 years in prison for the sexual and physical abuse of detainees at the Uzamnica camp in Visegrad in 1992 and 1993.
Milomir Djuricic and Vukadin Spasojevic’s defence lawyers told BIRN on Wednesday that the state court in Sarajevo has upheld the verdict convicting their clients of crimes against humanity after they were found guilty of a series of offences, including forcing prisoners to have sex with each other.
Under the first-instance verdict Djuricic was sentenced to five years in prison as the warden of the Uzamnica detention camp from August 1992 to April 1993, while Spasojevic received an 11-year prison sentence, as sergeant of the guards at the detention camp from May 1992 to September 1993.
Both were convicted of crimes against humanity and involvement in a widespread and systematic attack on the non-Serb population in Visegrad.
Djuricic was found guilty of failing to prevent his subordinates from abusing detainees and forcing them into sexual intercourse. Spasojevic was convicted of having forced detained women and men into sexual intercourse and of physically abusing them, which was classified as torture.
“These were abusive intercourses, because both women and men were forced into sexual intercourse,” presiding judge Stanisa Gluhajic explained at the trial.
Under the same verdict, Djuricic was acquitted of approving the sending of detainees to do forced labour, while Spasojevic was acquitted on 12 counts of forcing others to commit sexual abuse and inflicting severe suffering.
The Bosnian state court has issued a warrant for the arrest of Spasojevic, who was not found at his residence after the first-instance verdict was announced.
The verdict cannot be appealed.
