Serb brutally beaten in Kosovo prison, lawyer claims

Pantović said he had no information about the condition of the other four Serbs who were arrested at the same time as Đordan, saying he would insist the case be turned over to EULEX.

The lawyer said his client’s nose was broken and his head hurt when he had visited him and that he had sustained the injuries when police forced him out of his car, held his head and repeatedly slammed it against the car roof.

Đordan, 23, was detained by a group of ten special forces, in full anti-riot gear. When they brought him to Gnjilane, “they beat him with whatever was close at hand,” Pantović said.

Kosovo’s Deputy Prime Minster Slobodan Petrović said he visited Đordan on Saturday and found him well. Pantović said this was absolutely untrue.

“The investigation against the five Serbs is headed by a municipal prosecutor in Priština, and the other four are defended by court-appointed Albanian counsels,” he explained.

“They have been remanded in custody for one month,” Pantović stressed.

“Đordan is charged with attacking Kosovo police officers who were forced to defend themselves. On the other hand, we have the fact the defendant has been horribly beaten,” he warned.

One of the arrested Serbs is in custody in Priština and four are in Gnjilane. They were arrested during St. Vitus Day celebration on June 28.