The first hearing before the Appellate Panel of Section I for War Crimes of the Court of Bosnia and Herzegovina (BiH) in the case of Dragan Damjanović has been scheduled for tomorrow, 13 June 2007 in courtroom 5, starting at 10.00am.

On 15 December 2006, the Trial Panel handed down the first instance verdict in this case, finding Dragan Damjanović guilty of Crimes against humanity and sentencing him to 20 years imprisonment.

 

The Trial Panel’s verdict inter alia states that on several occasions in the period August 1992 to February 1993, the Accused visited the Planjina kuća Detention Camp, located in Vogošća, where he harassed and beat Bosniak civilians.  The Accused also took detainees from Planjina kuća to use them as human shields, as a result of which a significant number of detainees were wounded, and some of them killed.  The verdict further states that in January 1993, the Accused picked out several detainees from Planjina kuća and took them to perform forced labour.  He engraved a cross on the forehead of one of the detainees.  He then took him out of a group of detainees and escorted him behind a nearby house where he killed him.

 

The above verdict was appealed by the defence counsel for the Accused and the Prosecutor’s Office of BiH.