MS GORDANA TADIĆ, ACTING CHIEF PROSECUTOR, ADDRESSES MEDIA AND PUBLIC OF BOSNIA AND HERZEGOVINA ON 5 DECEMBER 2016

- Dear citizens,

Two months after taking office of the Acting Chief Prosecutor and before the end of the current year, I wish to address the public and inform them that in the past period we undertook a number of activities in order to ensure the efficient operation of the Prosecutor’s Office of Bosnia and Herzegovina.

In the past period, I held a series of meetings with my deputies, prosecutors and employees of the Prosecutor’s Office, as well as with officials from partner police and security agencies, to agree joint cooperation and activities in the future.

I can say to the public that in the forthcoming period and following completed investigations, we will make prosecutorial decisions in some very important cases dealing with organised crime, war crimes, corruption, terrorism and other criminal offences falling within our jurisdiction.

The work of the Prosecutor’s Office is best illustrated by our recent results. This year the Prosecutor’s Office of Bosnia and Herzegovina celebrates 13 years of its existence and is approaching the figure of 5000 persons accused of war crimes, organised crime, corruption, financial and tax crime, human trafficking, terrorism and other crimes falling within our jurisdiction.

In terms of prosecution of war crimes, the work of this Prosecutor’s Office has been recognised as we have reached the number of 640 persons accused of committing serious violations of international humanitarian law, and the percentage of convictions is exceeding 80%.

In the past 12 years, prosecutors in the Special Department for Organized Crime, Economic Crime and Corruption filed indictments in 564 cases against 1,797 defendants.

In the period from 2004 to late 2015 the Court of Bosnia and Herzegovina pronounced final convictions against 1,139 persons in the proceedings in the cases of the Special Department for Organised Crime, Economic Crime and Corruption.

The percentage of convictions in cases handled by the Prosecutor’s Office is exceeding 90%.

The public knows that in the past period a large number of cases were successfully completed and decades-long prison sentences handed down in cases of criminal organisations and many other cases that have significantly compromised the security of the citizens of our country.

In cases for money laundering cases alone, 203 persons were indicted and the illegal material gain in the amount of about 10.2 million KM (BAM) was seized under the judgments of the Court of Bosnia and Herzegovina.

For a period of four years, indictments were filed against 248 persons for the criminal offences of illicit trafficking in narcotic drugs.

In tax evasion and financial crime cases, namely in one case alone - Čago et al., unlawful material gain in the amount of 7.5 million KM (BAM) was seized.

Final judgments were pronounced for crimes of terrorism, in the duration of about 150 years in prison.

The Prosecutor’s Office will certainly accept reasonable and justified criticism of our work, but we would like to note that all citizens are equal before the law and that we will not allow the exposing of some cases for any reason.

We are always open to constructive dialogue.

I would like to point out that the Prosecutor’s Office of Bosnia and Herzegovina is an institution of all citizens of our country and that in the future we will continue to work intensively on prosecuting all crimes falling within our jurisdiction. We would like to thank to the citizens, the media, victims’ associations, non-governmental organisations, national and international partner institutions for all the support they are providing to us.