Lawyer Arsic: Pantic is suspected of livestock theft in 1999, we have proposed house arrest

A hearing was held before the Special Department of the Basic Court in Pristina to determine the detention of Tomislav Pantic (84) from Istok, who was arrested yesterday on suspicion of committing a war crime. Lawyer Vasilije Arsic stated that Pantic is suspected of allegedly participating in livestock theft during the events of 1999.

"Today, there was a hearing before the preliminary procedure judge. The prosecutor requested the imposition of detention, explaining that the suspect, Tomislav Pantic, allegedly participated in the theft of livestock in the village of Crnce during the 1999 conflict, involving around 270 head of livestock. There is no second suspect, and what the prosecutor presented is baseless—no witnesses have been mentioned in this situation. There is only one claim that he was involved in an event for which there is no description, no date, nor any specific actions of the suspect," Arsic said.

The defense, as Arsic added, proposed house arrest with a bail guarantee of €15,000.

"We are now waiting to see what the court will decide. In my opinion, they should be objective, but we'll see, as the practice has been somewhat different," the lawyer said.

He also pointed out that Pantic is in very poor health.

"He was examined by a doctor three times during the night, received two intravenous injections to lower his blood pressure, and I presented all these reasons to the judge as a basis for a more lenient measure. Whether the court will take this into account, we will see. The prosecutor was quite strict in his demands, not willing to consider the defense’s argument to look at the humane side of the case, not just the formal legal aspects. But I presented my position, and now we await the court's decision," Arsic stated.

Pantic's son, Aleksandar, claims that his father did not commit the crime he is accused of, expressing great concern for his father's health.

He also recalled that yesterday he and his son were also detained along with his father, but they were released after being questioned.

"They detained me, but they took me to the police station in Istok to give a statement. I gave my statement there. Both my son and I, my younger son who is 19 years old, were detained. After about an hour, they released us, but they took him [Tomislav Pantic] directly to Pristina," said Pantic.