The Basic Court in Pristina has ordered one month of pre-trial detention for three individuals suspected of committing war crimes against the civilian population during the Kosovo war.
The Special Department of this court approved the request of the Special Prosecution, assessing that there is grounded suspicion that the defendants B.T., M.I., and N.C. committed the criminal offense of “War crimes against the civilian population.”
According to the official announcement, the pre-trial judge ruled in favor of detention, finding that legal grounds for such a measure exist. The first two defendants, who served as prison guards at the Pristina Detention Center and its parallel facility in Lipjan during the 1998–1999 conflict, are suspected of systematically mistreating Albanian prisoners using various instruments, inflicting serious bodily injuries.
“There is grounded suspicion that the defendants B.T. and M.I., in their official capacity as guards at the Pristina Detention Center and the Lipjan parallel facility, during the period of armed conflict—namely the Kosovo war in 1998–1999—together with other prison officials, acted in violation of international humanitarian law and systematically tortured Albanian prisoners using rubber batons, metal rods, kicks, and punches to the point of unconsciousness, causing them serious bodily harm,” the statement reads.
The same charges apply to the defendant N.C., who, in her capacity as a prison guard at the Lipjan facility, is suspected of having used violence against Albanian female detainees in collaboration with other individuals.
The court concluded that there is a real risk that the defendants, if released, might flee, influence witnesses, or destroy evidence, thus deeming pre-trial detention the most appropriate measure for the successful continuation of the criminal proceedings.
