The indictment is changed: Trial hearing postponed for Oliver Ivanov's murder

The chairman of the Judicial Chamber, Valon Kurtaj, since the entrance of the session, announced the parties that on December 27th, exactly last Friday 15:00 by the Special Prosecutor have accepted a new indictment amended in the device of the first act of the indictment in the case of Ivanovic's murder.

He said that because they have recently accepted the amended indictment, they have not been able to announce the parties, nor even translate the indictment into Serbian. For that reason he asked the defence parties to show that they will continue this session or expect the indictment with changes to be translated into the Serbian language.

The defendants' defense in Ivanovic's murder case had numerous complaints regarding whether to accept evidence for the first indictment or not to translate the amended indictment, which required the postponement of the session.

According to the defendant's defence lawyer, Marko Rossic, Mahmut Halimi does not translate into the language the accused understands is out of the question.

Until indictee Nedelko Spasojevicc's lawyer, Dejan Vasic said his client even the first indictment and evidence has not accepted in Albanian, for which he demanded that they be translated and accepted in written form.

Afterward, court chairman Valon Kurtaj asked the Prosecutor to know how much time it takes to translate the indictment, while the prosecutor of the case, Blerim Isufaj, not specifying time, said it is possible for a month to complete the translation procedure.

Afterward, Judge Kurtaj gave the prosecution until January 30th to translate the altered evidence and indictment and to inform the accused and defence parties over time.

Following the conclusion of the session, Musa Damati, the defender of accused Silvana Arsovic, said it was one of the most mysterious murders that has occurred in Kosovo since the post-war period.

According to him, there is a shortage of constitutional elements that would create the criminal record of which his client is accused.

This is one of the most mysterious murders that has ever occurred in Kosovo since the post-war period, and in relation to my client, there is a shortage of constitutional elements that would create the criminal work figure she is accused of. And in this criminal case, in relation to my client, there is a lack of a cause between a criminal offense and the triggering of a criminal offense, in the form of criminal co-operation of access to serious murder, which my client is accused of. Today, legal conditions for keeping the initial session have failed, and after the initial session is held, and after the legal conditions, all objections to this act will be presented to the defence”, he said.

The father of accused Marko Rosic, Nebojsa Rossic, until he has praised this trial as a spectacle, said this indictment has nothing to do with the murder of Oliver Ivanovic.

The “are becoming like a spectacle from this trial, you have already seen this as a simple farce. I don't know, the exact amount of charge is this, just keep going, and it'll always be. Whoever has seen the indictment clearly has something to do with the murder of Oliver Ivanovic. This is about some beatings, groups, and no connection you've seen, phrase. That is why he was pushed. He's still in custody, and until they do that, I really am. You were witnesses, you saw what was happening and I really don't have words anymore. But I've been to the Ombudsperson, then to the American ambassador here, since they're saying they're interested in the case, and nobody's reacting, neither he, nor the international community”, he said.

Frustrated with the work of the judiciary and prosecutor of this case, Deputy Civic Initiative Vice President “Sloboda, the Democrat, Pravda (SDP), Ksenija Bozovic, who has the indictment for the murder of Serbian politics, Oliver Ivanovic has considered it a futile investigation and indictment.

She even accused the judiciary and the prosecution of doing non-professional work, and called on representatives of the international community to be present in this trial.

It's just confirmed what we've said since the first day of the investigation. That it's a futile investigation, a vain charge, that all of this is a farce, which has come true today. Nervosis with the judge, nonprofessional translation, no response from the prosecution, shows how unprofessional this institution is. I from this country had invited the representatives of the international community, who have worked on forming these institutions to take a little bit of their work and come to the scene to convey such judgments and see non-profession. It means defenders and no defendants have accepted the translation of the previous indictment as the new indictment arrives on Friday with new evidence... We knew from the start that the session would be postponed, and for the following dates of holding sessions, they're shopping like in the market. I think it's non-professional. If they don't start working professionally anymore, I don't expect anything special from”, she said.

Dejan Vasic, Nedelko Spasojevic's defence attorney, said that with these changes to the indictment the same person is being charged with two counts. He does not even know which indictment he will proceed with the February 11th session.

The hearing was postponed today because of the most absurd situation I've experienced in my career, that the prosecution on Friday brings new charges instead of changing the old, and now we have two counts for the same person, for similar acts and similar criminal acts. The judge has given the prosecution 30 days to offer protection to all evidence. That means 20 thousand more pages, and I really don't know what they've been doing for two years and why they haven't been translated so far. I expect the prosecution to do its job, perhaps physically, such a thing is impossible... It is now a big question, which court will hold in February, when there are two acts of”, said the lawyer, Nedelko Spasojevic.

Mahmut Halimi defence lawyer of accused Marko Rossic, after accepting the amended indictment, said the indictment for the murder of Oliver Ivanovic has undergone changes in the actual descriptions of the criminal act, but referring to the same matter.

According to him, the indictment that his client, Marko Rossic, is charged with remains unchanged, except for an expansion of organised crime.

“Today, there's been a change in the actual descriptions of the crime, and the reasoning I haven't been able to read, but it's about the same matter, the same matter. As for my client Marko Rossic, the situation remains unchanged with the exception of an expansion of an actual description of the indictment device in terms of organised crime, the qualitative element that that gives it”, Halimi said.

The chairman of the Judicial Chamber, Valon Kurtaj media, was given the opportunity to get images just two minutes after, according to him, refused any official requests to submit the case.

Kosovo's Special Prosecutor has filed charges on December 2nd against six persons of Serbian nationalism, Marko Rassic, Nedelko Spasojevicq, Dragisa Markovic, Zarko Jovanovic, Silvana Arsovic and Radeta Basara, who are charged with criminal acts, participation or organisation of the criminal group, misuse of the official position, help carry out the criminal act grave murder, unauthorised possession of the weapon, intelligence of the official secret and misuse of official office by manipulating with evidence.

Party leader “Civic Initiative “Sloboda, Democrat Pravda”, Oliver Ivanovic was killed on January 16th 2018 in an attack organised in front of his party headquarters in northern Mitrovica.