Basic Court: No grounds for detention of Laković and Mučalica, suspected of acts authorities were aware of all along

The Basic Court in Podgorica announced that there were no grounds to detain Saša Laković and Nemanja Mučalica, who are suspected of providing logistical support and assistance in the escape of Miloš Medenica, as there is no risk of reoffending or influencing witnesses.

- They are suspected of actions carried out three months ago, about which law enforcement authorities were aware the entire time. The prosecutor did not assess the suspects’ family, economic, and social ties to Montenegro or abroad, nor was the severity of the alleged criminal offense even considered. The risk of flight is based on the conclusion that the suspects are clearly well acquainted with how escapes and hiding can be organized, without providing a single concrete reason why the suspects would actually flee - the Basic Court stated.

The court added that there is no risk of influencing witnesses either.

- In her decision, the state prosecutor does not specify whether the suspects and the witness know each other or whether they had any communication since the escape of Miloš Medenica, nor whether the suspects had any opportunity so far to influence the said witness. The witness to be questioned has already presented facts to the police which the suspects did not dispute in their defense. The investigating judge notes that it remains entirely unclear on what basis the prosecution concluded that there is a risk of influencing a witness in this specific case - the Basic Court said.

They also stressed that the prosecutor’s decision does not provide clear reasons regarding decisive facts, or that the reasons given are unclear and contradictory to the factual situation. Therefore, in accordance with the law, the investigating judge released the suspects to defend themselves from liberty.