Serbia Gives Citizenship to Fugitive War Crimes Defendant

The Serbian authorities granted citizenship to former Bosnian Serb military policeman Mirko Vrucinic in June 2020 - two months before his defence was due to present its closing arguments in his war crimes trial, BIRN has learned.

The Bosnian state court told BIRN that Vrucinic's name was entered in the registry of Serbian citizens in September 2020 on the basis of an order issued by the Serbian Interior Ministry in June.

On August 31, 2020, Vrucinic failed to appear for a hearing at the Bosnian state court in Sarajevo, conveying a message through his lawyer Branko Gudalo that he had gone to Serbia because his trial was unfair.

After the court was informed that he has absconded to Serbia, it was found that he had crossed the Raca border crossing on August 30 at 1.25pm.

Vrucinic, former chief of the police's Public Security Station and a member of the Crisis Committee in Sanski Most, had been on trial since 2015 for participating in a joint criminal enterprise that was responsible for murders, forced resettlement, unlawful detentions and forced disappearances.

Prosecutor Eldina Biuk said at the hearing on August 31 last year that the state prosecution had asked Serbia several times to provide information about whether Vrucinic had dual citizenship or if he had applied for Serbian citizenship, but the Belgrade authorities did not answer.

"We also sought help through Interpol," Bosnian state prosecution spokesperson Boris Grubesic told BIRN.

"The Prosecutor's Office in The Hague provided help and coordination in November 2020, so we received a response from the Serbian War Crimes Prosecution that he had Serbian citizenship and a declared place of residence in that country," Grubesic said.

BIRN tried to obtain...