Radic: The verdict against Pleskovic continues the practice of long sentences without evidence

Attorney Veljko Radic, one of the defense lawyers for Milos Pleskovic, stated for Kosovo Online that the verdict against his client continues the negative practice of Kosovo’s courts, where long prison sentences are imposed without any material evidence. Pleskovic's defense team has announced an appeal of the verdict.

"With this verdict, unfortunately, the negative practice of Kosovo’s courts continues, in which individuals are sentenced to lengthy prison terms without any solid material evidence. As you yourselves witnessed in the courtroom during the reading and explanation of the verdict, there was not a single piece of material evidence in this criminal proceeding. The verdict is based solely on the testimony of one witness whom the court decided to trust," Radic told reporters.

He pointed out that if one examines the course of the investigation and the entire criminal procedure, it becomes clear that the testimony of the witness trusted by the court is, in itself, contradictory and does not align with the statements of other witnesses.

"I regret that such a verdict was handed down. However, the legal battle is not over. The defense will certainly appeal this verdict, and I sincerely hope that in the appellate proceedings, justice, reason, and professionalism will prevail, and that this verdict will be overturned," Radic concluded.

Attorney Jovana Filipovic also stated that the 15-year sentence for Pleskovic reflects the state of Kosovo’s judiciary.

"It is enough for an indictment to be raised against someone, no matter how weak, and a conviction will follow. The court accepted the prosecution's claim that a 19-year-old boy was a sergeant in the army, even though he had never served regular military duty. They accepted that a war crimes report was filed by an anonymous witness, and only later did the alleged victim give a statement, which makes it even worse. A verdict was passed that someone committed three murders, without a single eyewitness, or any kind of evidence linking the accused to the victims. I am confident that such a conviction is neither legally nor logically sustainable based on this evidence," Filipovic stated in a written statement.