Serbian prosecutor says new evidence being collected in case of Bytyqi brothers' murder

Agron, Mehmet and Yll Bytyqi, American nationals of origin from Kosovo, were arrested in 1999 in Serbia because of, as Serbian officials have said, illegal border crossing.

They were released from prison after being convicted and then killed. Their troops were found in a mass grave near Petrovo Selos in eastern Serbia in 2001.

In a response to Radio Free Europe, the Serbian Prosecution said the murder of the Bytyqi brothers is in the investigation phase under way against the unknown “authors on the grounds of the suspicion that war crime was committed against war inmates”.

It is true that new evidence is being collected in order to determine the identity of the author of crime. All these actions are under way to raise the level of evidence to the degree required for the increase of the” act, the statement said.

The star, Agron and Mehmet Bytyqi, who fought in support of the Kosovo Liberation Army (UÇK), within the framework of the Euro-Atlantic Battalion “, following NATO bombings, in 1999 were arrested at the border between Kosovo and Serbia for illegal border crossings.

After remaining in prison for 15 days, they were released, but the Serbian police sent them to the Serbian Interior Ministry's special anti-terror base in Petrovo Selo, which was under the command of Goran Radosavsic Gur.

Their bodies, which were found with hands tied and wounds caused by bullets to the back of the head, were discovered in 2001 in a mass cemetery in Petrovo Selo, in eastern Serbia, along with the lifeless bodies of other Kosovo Albanians.

The problem in our case and in many other cases is that Serbia venerates and protects war criminals”, Ilir Bytyqi, brother of three killed American citizens, Star, Agron and Mehmet Bytyqi told Radio Europe.

These comments by Ilir Bytyqi come after Serbia honoured with a medal of gratitude former Serbian Gendarmerie Commander Goran Radosavlevq-Guri.

Through a written response, Ilir Bytyqi told Radio Free Europe that “apty between Serbian President Aleksandar Vuciq and his government with war criminals is shame” and that this “prevents justice and deprives victims to reach peace”.

In 2016, President Vuciq promised then Vice President Beden (current president of the United States) that he would personally engage in solving the murder of my brothers. Vuciqi later told my family and American officials that Goran Radosavlevki was responsible for their murder. For a long time there is long and sufficient evidence (for this)”, Bytyqi said.

The Serbian presidency has not answered REL's question whether Vuciqi has spoken to US officials about Radosavlevki's responsibility for killing the Bytyqi brothers and what information Vuciqi has about the case. Serbian officials, led by President Vuciq, have not confirmed these claims by Ilir Bytyqi, which he has made public in front of the media.

Following Radio Free Europe report on June 30th, that the gendarmerie, in recognition of successful co-operation, shared a medal with Radosavlevki, who was the first commander of the special unit of gendarmerie, the American Embassy in Belgrade reacted.

Recalling that Radosavlevqi was at the helm of the camp where the remains of three American citizens, Star, Agron and Mehmet Bytyqi were found, the embassy said on July 3rd that Radosavljevic “should face justice and should not take medals”.

In a Twitter post, the American Embassy also recalled that the United States had sanctioned Radosavlevcin for its involvement in the murder of the Bytyqi brothers.