On 30 May 2008 the Court of Bosnia and Herzegovina rendered the first-instance verdict in the criminal case of Mejakić et al., finding the accused Željko Mejakić, Momčilo Gruban and Duško Knežević guilty of the criminal offense of Crimes against Humanity. The enacting clause of the verdict states that the accused participated in abuses and persecutions committed during the period from 30 April to the end of 1992 against the non-Serbs in the territory of the Prijedor municipality; about 7000 non-Serb civilians were subjected to capturing, taking to and arbitrary confinement at the Omarska and Keraterm camps, as part of the plan of permanent removal of the non-Serbs. In that regard:

Željko Mejakić was found guilty primarily by virtue of his criminal responsibility, as the chief who supervised the guards at the Omarska camp, for the criminal offense of Crimes against Humanity in violation of Article 172 (1) of the Criminal Code of Bosnia and Herzegovina, as follows: killings, unlawful confinement of the captives in the camps, tortures, sexual abuse, persecution and other inhuman acts such as confinement the detainees in inhuman conditions, harassments, humiliation and other psychological abuse.
Željko Mejakić is sentenced to the long-term imprisonment of 21 years.

Momčilo Gruban was found guilty of the criminal offence of Crimes against Humanity in violation of Article 172 (1) of the Criminal Code of Bosnia and Herzegovina , also primarily by virtue of his role as a leader of one of the three guard shifts in the Omarska camp.
Momčilo Gruban was sentenced to 11 years of imprisonment.

Duško Knežević was found guilty of the criminal offence of Crimes against Humanity in violation of Article 172 (1) of the Criminal Code of Bosnia and Herzegovina primarily as a direct perpetrator of a number of the criminal offences in the Omarska and Keraterm camps, as follows: killings, tortures and other inhumane acts and persecution, whereas he has been charged with the sexual assault exclusively as part of his participation in the „Joint Criminal Enterprise“ of the system in the Omarska camp.
Duško Kneževeić was sentenced to a long-term imprisonment of 31 years.

The time the Accused spent in custody in the ICTY, and in the Detention Unit of the Court of Bosnia and Herzegovina based on the Decisions of the Court of BiH following the transfer of the case, shall be credited towards the imposed prison sentence.

This is the third case transferred from the ICTY to the Court of Bosnia and Herzegovina for further procedure.

 

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