Residents of one of the buildings in Podgorica's Block V fear that a fellow citizen, after being released from the health facility where he is being housed, will attack them again, because, they claim, he injured two neighbors at the end of last year.
According to them, the attack took place on December 24th, when he entered one of the apartments and injured one of the two people with a knife.
They are demanding that the state institutionally and permanently place their neighbor - a resident of the Center for Social Work - somewhere, and they have provided "Vijesti" with several verdicts in which the Basic Court found that fellow citizen guilty of several similar incidents over the last almost two decades.
After several interventions based on the tenant's complaint, the City Inspection Department also notified the Ombudsman, who in mid-December last year, among other things, stated that the Podgorica resident's "rights were jeopardized due to systemic inconsistency and insufficiently efficient coordination between competent institutions in the field of protecting the rights of persons with severe psychiatric illnesses."
Reactions of the Police Administration
His neighbors claim that they "feel threatened", and point out that the Police Directorate is aware of the case, because they have repeatedly reported threats to them and provided evidence that this fellow citizen is armed.
The Police Directorate (UP) confirmed to "Vijesti" that they are aware of the problem, and that they have searched the apartment of this Podgorica resident twice. They claim that they found illegal items on both occasions.
The first search, they said, was carried out last May, and the prosecutor on duty was informed of the results.
"Even after initiating and obtaining an order to search the apartment from the Basic Court, the search was carried out and certain items were found that were temporarily seized. The prosecutor at the Basic State Prosecutor's Office in Podgorica was informed about the incident and stated that the actions of this person did not constitute elements of a criminal offense, but rather that the existence of a misdemeanor was assessed. This person was brought before the judge on duty of the Minor Offense Court in Podgorica, after which a decision was made declaring this person guilty and imposing a protective measure on him, and he was sent to the Clinical Center of Montenegro for an appropriate examination, after which he was taken for hospitalization in an appropriate health facility," they said.
The second search, according to the UP's response, took place last December when police officers received a report that a Podgorica resident had attacked two people. According to them, the prosecutor at the Podgorica Basic State Prosecutor's Office (ODT) was informed of the incident, "who ordered that the prosecutor at the Higher State Prosecutor's Office (VDT) be informed of the incident."
"On his order, police officers took the necessary measures and actions, after which they submitted the entire case files for assessment and opinion. After reviewing the files, the senior state prosecutor ordered that they be referred to the basic state prosecutor for further action. The basic state prosecutor ordered that the Podgorica resident be referred for appropriate examinations to the Clinical Center of Montenegro, after which a protective measure was imposed on him and he was taken to be hospitalized in an appropriate health facility."
Opinion of the Ombudsman
The Ombudsman's findings stated that the Inspection Department (UIP) of the Capital City received initiatives almost daily, relating to problems with their neighbor.
It was also determined that this fellow citizen is a resident of the Center for Social Work, and that during field visits it was determined what conditions he lives in.
"... Who allegedly lives in inhumane conditions and causes damage to the tenants living below his apartment. That the municipal inspector issued a decision ordering the Center for Social Work - Service for Adults and the Elderly to take the necessary actions to stop further water leaks, to act according to the expert findings of the Housing Agency and eliminate the defect in the apartment, and to provide more humane conditions for the same," the Ombudsman's opinion states.
The document also states that it has been determined that the citizen's condition is "permanent, chronic and incurable", and that he requires constant therapy and supervision.
"And that the experts stated that he is dangerous to the environment... and that he has no insight into his health condition... That the professional workers of the Center for Social Work have difficulty communicating with the user, because he does not understand the role of the Center and refuses to cooperate, he is not capable of functioning independently, nor of planning activities with institutions."
It was also stated that "cooperation with the Center is not possible until the user is under therapy and constant medical supervision."
"Because it makes communication, planning of services and activities difficult, and creates a risk for employees due to his unpredictable behavior. Yes, although he has a personal income and is provided with housing, due to his health condition he is unable to dispose of his own resources, and his behavior causes harm to neighbors who have been filing complaints to the Center and other institutions for years," it states.
The Ombudsman recommended that the health and social care departments immediately establish an interdepartmental body "which will have the mandate to develop specific guidelines and act urgently in the most complex cases."
This institution concludes that this fellow citizen, "as a person with a mental illness, who is partially deprived of legal capacity, has his rights jeopardized due to systemic incompatibility and insufficient coordination among competent institutions."
The Ombudsman also noted that, despite the efforts of the Center for Social Work, the problem remains unresolved. The Ombudsman also notes that he is concerned about the fact that a team has not been formed in Podgorica to deal with the issue of mental health.
Judgments
According to documentation provided to the editorial office by the building's residents, their neighbor was convicted of multiple criminal offenses of causing minor bodily harm, as well as causing general danger, between 2006 and 2023.
Thus, the Podgorica Basic Court found him guilty of setting fire to an apartment in 2006. The same court also found him guilty of stabbing another citizen with a knife on Blaža Jovanovića Street in Podgorica in 2012.
The following year, the Basic Court in Podgorica found him guilty of violent behavior towards a fellow citizen, whom he attacked with a butcher's hammer and threatened to kill. According to the verdicts, which Vijesti has access to, the fellow citizen physically attacked and pushed passersby.
In May 2023, the Podgorica Basic Court also found him guilty of causing bodily harm by "hitting a fellow citizen in the head with a baton, causing him a minor bodily injury in the form of a gash in the left eyebrow area, about two centimeters long."
If the competent institutions do not react and do not accept their demands, the residents of Block V said earlier, they will organize a protest.
"It is obvious that we do not feel safe in our own apartments. If the institutions do not react, we will be forced to express our dissatisfaction in a protest," the residents said, adding "that their situation is an 'open secret' in the city."
The Center has done everything in its power, the Department of Social Welfare is silent
Of all the responsible institutions listed by the Ombudsman, his opinion concluded that the Center for Social Work had fulfilled all obligations within its jurisdiction.
The Center confirmed to "Vijesti" that, as wards of a fellow citizen, they "have completed all tasks within their jurisdiction."
"The protection of citizens is carried out by the Ministry of Internal Affairs (MUP)," they said.
The Ministry of Social Welfare, Family Care and Demography did not respond to the editorial team's questions regarding the Ombudsman's recommendations.
Ministry of Health: Formation of an expert body underway
The Ministry of Health told "Vijesti" that the department "continually takes measures that are within its legal jurisdiction."
"...Acting responsibly and in accordance with the best professional practices. The process of forming an interdepartmental expert body is underway, whose work will enable a comprehensive and coordinated approach to this issue. The public will be informed in a timely and transparent manner about the conclusions and outcomes of the first meeting of the aforementioned body," the department, headed by Vojislav Šimun, told "Vijesti".
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