Fugitive Father of Dead Bosnian Student Gives Dramatic TV Statement

In his first television appearance on Wednesday evening since he went into hiding on December 30, Davor Dragicevic accused the authorities in Republika Srpska of seeking to kill him, after daily protests over the death of his 21-year-old son sparked widespread public anger in Bosnia's Serb-dominated entity.

"I'm not afraid. I hid so that they would not kill me," Dragicevic claimed in a live address that was broadcast by N1 TV.

"[The Serb member of the tripartite Bosnian Presidency] Milorad Dodik, [Republika Srpska Interior Minister] Dragan Lukac and the whole of the Republika Srpska police want to kill me," he alleged.

The men he accused have yet to respond publicly to his allegations, for which he provided no evidence.

Dragicevic made his live televised statement from an unknown location, sitting in front of a white wall, and stating that he was safe and "among good people".

Dragicevic, the father of David Dragicevic, a student who died in uncertain circumstances in March 2018, had been leading daily protests since then under the slogan 'Justice for David', holding daily rallies in Republika Srpska's administrative centre, Banja Luka.

A day after Davor Dragicevic disappeared in late December, the Republika Srpska Interior Ministry issued a warrant for his arrest, accusing him of provoking violence after protesters clashed with police in Banja Luka.

Dragicevic's campaign had gathered support from thousands of people in the Serb-dominated entity who demanded that his son's killers be found. Protests have continued every evening for more than ten months.

The campaign gained additional momentum in December after Dragicevic was arrested over one of the protests outside the Republika Srpska parliament on December 17.

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