Supreme Court: Appeals rejected, defendants in the murder of Slavoljub Šćekić sentenced to 30 years in prison

The Supreme Court of Montenegro rejected as unfounded the appeals of the accused and their defense attorneys and confirmed the verdict of the Court of Appeal of Montenegro in the case of the murder of police inspector Slavoljub Šćekić, making this verdict final.

"With the confirmed verdict, the accused Saša Boreta, Ljubo Bigović, Ljubo Vujadinović and Milan Šćekić were sentenced to 30 years in prison each for aggravated murder, causing general danger and other criminal offenses. The Supreme Court assessed that no significant violations of the law were committed during the proceedings and that the Court of Appeals correctly assessed the evidence presented, including witness statements, material evidence, expert opinions and other evidence conducted during the proceedings," the statement states.

The Supreme Court added that the court specifically stated that lower courts, the High Court in Podgorica, and the Court of Appeals had explained in detail the evidence they used to establish the facts related to the planting of explosive devices at the construction site of the Splendid Hotel in Budva in 2005, as well as the circumstances of the murder of Inspector Slavoljub Šćekić.

"The Supreme Court assessed that the Court of Appeal acted correctly after part of the previously presented evidence was singled out as legally invalid, and that in the repeated proceedings the decision was based on evidence that was legally valid," the statement reads.

The Supreme Court said that they also concluded that the Court of Appeals was competent to conduct a hearing and make a decision on its own after the earlier rulings were overturned, in accordance with the provisions of the Criminal Procedure Code.

"The Supreme Court assessed that in this way the right of the accused to a two-instance procedure and a fair trial was ensured. The Supreme Court assessed that the accused's right to defense was not violated during the proceedings and that they were provided with the standards of a fair trial guaranteed by the Constitution of Montenegro and the European Convention on Human Rights, including the right of the defense to ask questions of witnesses, including a protected witness, which is why the defense's allegations in that regard were rejected as unfounded," the Supreme Court said in a statement.

On September 24th of last year, the Appellate Court Panel decided to re-sentence the four defendants in the murder of police officer Slavoljub Šćekić (46) - Saša Boreta, Ljubo Bigovi, Ljubo Vujadinović and Milan Čilo Šćekić - to 30 years in prison each.

Slavoljub Šćekić was killed on August 30, 2005 at 00:45 in the Podgorica neighborhood of Tološi, in the immediate vicinity of his family home.