The Basic Court in Pristina announced today the verdict against the three accused for the terrorist attack in Banjska i Zveçani, which happened on September 24, 2023.
Blagoje Spasojevic and Vladimir Tolic were sentenced to life imprisonment, while Dusan Maksimovic was sentenced to 30 years in prison.
The decision was announced by the court chaired by Ngadnjim Arni, with members Rrahman Beqiri and Donike Shala-Abdyli.
Only Maksimović was present at the session, while the other two were absent.
The parties have the right to appeal to the Court of Appeal within the legal term of 30 days.
The serious incident in Banjska shocked Kosovo and the region, when an armed group of heavily armed Serbs blocked the bridge in the village and attacked the Kosovo Police who had gone to remove the truck from the road.
During the fight, Sergeant Afrim Bunjaku was killed, while several other policemen were injured. According to the indictment of the Special Prosecutor’s Office, the aim of the attackers was to separate the north of Kosovo and unite it with Serbia, endangering the lives of policemen and the civilian population.
The three convicts are part of a group of 45 people who were indicted about a year after the event, including Milan Radoicic, former vice-president of the Serbian List, described as the “head of the terrorist group”.
The court decided to separate the procedure for Spasojevic, Tolic and Maksimovic, who have been in custody since September 2023, while for the other 42, it rejected the request of the Prosecution for a trial in absentia.
In Serbia, meanwhile, no indictment has been filed, despite calls from the EU and NATO for the perpetrators of the attack to be held accountable.
