When the key police witness in a violence investigation is - a perpetrator!

The news that brothers Marko Jaćimović (27) and his two-years-younger brother Miloš Jaćimović were arrested on suspicion of beating an Albanian citizen on the night between Saturday and Sunday might have been just another item in the crime reports.

It would also reflect something already, unfortunately, well known: among a significant portion of the young population in Montenegro, there is extreme animosity toward people of other nationalities or religions.

A CHAUVINISTIC FARCE

However, the fact that Marko Jaćimović was both a participant and a key police witness in the investigation of the October fight in the Podgorica neighborhood of Zabjelo raises other question. Primarily about the validity of police procedures in a case personally overseen by the Director of the Police Directorate Lazar Šćepanović.

After the initial police statement in which two Turkish citizens and one Azerbaijani citizen were suspected of attacking Jaćimović, large-scale unrest followed, including anti-Turkish protests and attacks on property owned by Turkish nationals in several Montenegrin cities.

For two nights, horrifying hatred spread through the streets of Podgorica, shops were set on fire and storefronts belonging to Turkish citizens were smashed.

Instead of maintaining public order, during those October nights the police largely „secured“ gatherings filled with chants directed against all members of the Islamic faith, accompanied by cries from the enraged crowd: „Turks, get out!“.

ŠĆEPANOVIĆ APPEASING THE CROWD

During those turbulent days, police leadership and the Minister of the Interior, instead of trying to preserve civil peace, largely competed in pandering to the lowest instincts of the crowd.

Appearing on public television, Šćepanović made no effort to defend Turkish citizens living and working in Montenegro. On the contrary, he informed the public that the police had prosecuted many of them.

- As you know, the Police Directorate has repeatedly publicly stated that it has processed hundreds of Turkish citizens for tax evasion, for certain business activities they conduct, and also for criminal activities - said the director, not without pride.

DISTURBING IMAGES FROM PODGORICA

At the same time, the Montenegrin public was shocked by images that could usually only be seen in countries ruled by dictatorships, where the state systematically persecutes members of „undesirable“ national or religious groups.

One photograph shows more than thirty Turks forced by police to leave their apartments and line up in front of a building wall, facing the wall with their hands raised.

This very photograph prompted Democratic Party official Boris Bogdanović to triumphantly declare that the police were „protecting the state“.

- The police detained more than 40 Turkish citizens. We are protecting our country. We are protecting every home. No compromise in defending citizens’ security - Bogdanović proudly posted on his Facebook profile alongside the photo.

It is hard to find a comparable example of reckless, disgraceful, and dangerous targeting of an entire national group. The only thing missing was for Bogdanović to ask his party colleague, Minister of Police Danilo Šaranović, to put yellow armbands on Turkish citizens as soon as possible.

Then, adding fuel to the fire, apparently to prove he was „on the right side“, Šćepanović announced that all key information about the Zabjelo fight came from Marko Jaćimović, the son of a police officer, whom the director and investigators evidently trusted without reservation.

- On this occasion, I wish a speedy recovery to the injured young man from Zabjelo, and to his family, especially since he is the son of our colleague - Šćepanović said on public television.

REVEALING POLICE FAILURES

Lawyer Veselin Radulović told ETV that the news about Jaćimović’s violent behavior has revived concerns about the poorly conducted police investigation into the October incident in Zabjelo.

- The news that Marko Jaćimović has been prosecuted for violent behavior motivated by national hatred has rightly brought back attention to that incident from a few months ago. A few days ago, we saw that it resulted in a first-instance verdict against Azerbaijani citizens, who were sentenced to two years in prison - Radulović said.

Following Jaćimović’s „testimony“, Montenegrin police arrested two Turkish citizens, even though both insisted they had alibis. This apparently did not concern Šćepanović or other police officials. It was later established that there had been no „vicious attack by Turks“, but rather a fight, and that the two Turkish citizens arrested had not participated at all.

Had they truly wanted to conduct an independent investigation, the police, including Šćepanović, could have compared video footage from a nearby establishment and noticed inconsistencies in Jaćimović’s witness statement.

NO ACCOUNTABILITY

Radulović emphasized that the recent incident involving the Jaćimović brothers shows that the police failed to conduct an adequate investigation in October and did not properly establish the facts or respond appropriately to crimes motivated by national hatred.

- What is certain is that there are serious suspicions that the security sector acts selectively. This always leads to poor outcomes and can result in judgments that do not reflect the true state of affairs. If the police fail to establish facts and gather evidence during the investigation, it cannot be expected that the court will later deliver a fair verdict - Radulović said.

Due to the flawed police investigation from last October, no one in the police has been held accountable. So far, no one has apologized to the two Turkish citizens who were unjustly arrested and spent several days in detention. There is also no information on whether anyone from the top of the Police Directorate suspended the head of the investigative team or proposed compensation for the wrongful arrest and suspicion.

It is also unknown how much the rushed introduction of visas for Turkish citizens, implemented by Prime Minister Milojko Spajić just days after the protests, has cost.

It is possible that Marko Jaćimović will also avoid accountability. After being detained and questioned, he was not placed in custody, even though this is the second physical altercation he has been involved in over the past six months.