Mihajlovic: A Police Officer told me - either your son will kill someone, or we will kill him

During yesterday's operation, the Kosovo Police Special Units targeted the Mihajlovic family home in Zvecan, searching for Marko Mihajlovic. Although Marko was not at home, the officers told his mother, Milica, "Your son is a terrorist. Either he will kill someone, or we will kill him."

In an interview with Kosovo Online, the single mother, Milica Mihajlovic, described the police raid and behavior as extremely distressing.

Around noon on Saturday, Milica received a call from neighbors informing her that the street was full of special unit officers who were searching for someone in front of her house.

"I ran home. There were more than 30 of them, fully equipped in combat gear. As I approached, I saw one of the inspectors holding photos of my late husband, who died five years ago, as well as photos of my son Marko, me, and my daughter," Mihajlovic began her story.

She asked the officers who they were looking for, thinking they might be searching for her deceased husband, and tried to explain that he had passed away and offered to show them his grave.

However, the police informed her that they were not looking for her late husband or her but responded:
"We are looking for a terrorist, your son, Marko Mihajlovic."

"I asked, 'What do you mean, a terrorist? Why? What did he do?' but they refused to answer me. Before that, they had already entered the house while I wasn’t there. I demanded a warrant, but they said there was no need for one and that they came to arrest Marko. One of the inspectors told me that if I didn’t agree to let them in, they would force their way in. I told them there was no problem," the woman recounted.

The home in question is the family house where she lives with her children.

"Then, one of them, the one holding the rifle, yelled at me, 'Tell us what’s inside,' to which I replied that there was nothing. They came in and started tearing everything apart. They overturned beds, emptied out drawers, and even went through my late husband’s clothes, which I keep here because he was a hunter. They found his things and said, 'This belongs to Marko. Where is he?' I replied that he was in Novi Sad," Mihajlovic explained.

She said the police accused her of lying and tried to seize her mobile phone.

"They searched everything, and when they found a sweatshirt of Marko’s near the heater, a police officer approached me, yelling at me. I’ll quote him exactly: 'Your son is a terrorist. Either he will kill someone, or we will kill him.' Can you imagine hearing something like that as a mother who is raising her children alone? Whether I’m Serbian, Muslim, or Albanian—it doesn’t matter. I was in shock," the widow recounted through tears.

She added that the police also went to their apartment in Mali Zvecan, broke down the door, searched it, and then sealed it with yellow tape.

"My Marko is 18 years old. He attends medical high school. Besides that, he works in our store from 7 a.m. to 11 a.m., which my late husband left us. After school, he continues working. I have evidence that he was in school and at the store during those days, as well as witnesses. My son, an 18-year-old boy who just turned of age a month ago... How can he be a terrorist? An 18-year-old boy, a terrorist?" Milica questioned.

She emphasized that such behavior was unacceptable and deeply traumatic for her as a single mother.

Finally, she received information from the police about why they were looking for her son.

"They told me that he was responsible for what happened in Varaga, for everything that occurred in Zvecan recently—the police station, the gas station, and I don’t know what else. They said they had evidence and a tip-off. That’s what they told me before leaving," Mihajlovic said.