Zoran Pasalic (BETAPHOTO/MILAN ILIC)
Ombudsman Zoran Pasalic is the first in a line of government officials who have confirmed the existence of surveillance videos from the Cabinet Headquarters garage where police led by Marko Kricak detained protestors following a rally in mid-August, the Insajder news outlet reported on Sept. 30.
Multiple university students accused members of the special police Unit for the Protection of Specific Persons and Facilities of harassment that night, including beatings, threats of a bullet to the head and rape, the Insajder website recalled.
Pasalic stated that the surveillance tapes do not support these allegations but declined to say whether any images show police beating the detainees, citing his wish to conclude his audit of the police officers’ conduct before commenting.
“Unfortunately, I must say that a lot of [the claims] are untrue,” Pasalic said when asked what he has determined so far, yet stressed that he could discuss the exact content of the videos only after his investigation is finished.
“I’ve said a hundred times that once the case is closed, the public will be informed. Only after the [investigation] is complete and the Ombudsman’s Office has reached a conclusion, i.e. a recommendation, which is backed by evidence and facts – I don’t know how many times I’ve repeated this. We won’t offer partial or blanket statements,” Pasalic insisted.
The ombudsman launched his inquiry immediately after university student and activist Nikolina Sindjelic, followed by other detained students, accused Kricak’s unit of police brutality.
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