Testimony of Marko Rakic from Leposavic: My brother was arrested in Djakovica over orchard tools

My brother and three friends were attending an evening liturgy in Visoki Decani, after which they headed to the Prizren Theological Seminary. They were visiting our holy sites. The police stopped them in Djakovica and, during a search of the SUV he was driving, they found a small bag in the trunk containing tools we use for fruit growing, because my brother and I own several hectares of orchard land, Marko Rakic from Leposavic said in an interview with Novosti, whose brother was arrested in Djakovica along with three other Serbs.

"That tool set can be bought at any gas station. But following their arrest, an Albanian political media campaign began, claiming they were spies, saying they had maps and cold weapons. They were first held in police custody and then given 30 days of detention. It’s outrageous,” Rakic said.

His brother Branko, along with the three other Serbs, was arrested over the weekend, and the authorities in Pristina practically labeled them as terrorists. Along with Rakic, those in custody include Serbian Army captain Milovan Stevic (a dentist working at the Military Medical Academy) originally from the village of Borcani in northern Kosovo, Nemanja Vamovic, a forester from Novi Sad, and Pavle Kragovic, who works in Kragujevac and frequently visits his parents who live in Zubin Potok.

Rakic explained that his brother Branko (47) recently underwent a serious heart surgery, and all medical records and discharge papers were submitted to the court. He questioned how it was possible for a man who underwent such a serious procedure to have his hands cuffed behind his back, and, more importantly, how someone could be arrested and detained for simply possessing orchard tools.

“Even though my brother told the court that the tools were his personal property and pleaded for the others to be released because they had nothing to do with it, it didn’t help. He even asked the court panel whether he needed a permit for those tools, but got no answer. A few of us were outside the courthouse, police checked us twice, but they wouldn’t let us in to follow the proceedings,” Rakic recounted.

He emphasized that all four of those arrested are respectable, family-oriented, and honorable men, academics, believers, and people with no record of any offense, let alone a criminal one. After the trial, deliberation lasted more than three hours, and it was obvious that, due to political and media pressure, the court decided to impose detention.

“They were detained without any evidence of guilt because there was none. Even bail was offered, but it was rejected, clearly with the intention of portraying Serbs as troublemakers. It didn’t help that Branko informed them that he had undergone major heart surgery less than two months ago,” Rakic said.

The Kosovo police detained twelve pilgrims from central Serbia in Prizren on Sunday, who were visiting religious sites in the city. According to Kosovo media, all of them were released, although two had initially been held for up to 48 hours.