The Appellate Panel of Section I for War Crimes of the Court of Bosnia and Herzegovina (BiH) has issued the final verdict in the case of Gojko Janković, partially upholding the defence appeal, and modifying the Trial Panel’s verdict of 16 February 2007 in the legal qualification of the acts constituting the criminal offence of Crimes against humanity, for which the Trial Panel had convicted the Accused. The Trial Panel’s verdict remains unchanged in the remaining parts, including the long term imprisonment of 34 years which the Trial Panel imposed on the Accused.

The Trial Panel found Gojko Janković guilty of Crimes against humanity.  On 14 April 1992 the Accused commanded a group of soldiers who attacked the hamlet of Brežine / Zubovići in the municipality of Foča, which was inhabited by civilians of Muslim nationality.  Following the attack some of these civilians were taken into captivity, interrogated and beaten, and then transferred to the Foča Prison camp.  Further, on 3 July 1992 the Accused commanded a group of soldiers who attacked Muslim civilians hiding in the woods on the Kremnik hill.  During this attack three civilians were killed, several of them were wounded, while seven male and thirty women and children were captured.  The captured civilians were interrogated and brutally beaten, and the Accused, together with several soldiers under his command, shot seven male captives.  Between mid June and mid August 1992, the Accused on several occasions raped a female detainee who was held in the Partizan sports hall in Foča. 

The Accused was acquitted of participating in the rape of another female person in the period between 7 April and May 1992. 

The time the Accused has been held in custody from 14 March 2005 will count towards the sentence.  The case of Gojko Janković is the second case transferred to the BiH Authorities by the International Criminal Court for Former Yugoslavia.