The continuation of the trial of the former president of the Supreme Court of Montenegro, Vesna Medenica, her son Miloš and the other defendants, which was scheduled for today in the High Court in Podgorica, was postponed to April 18 because the defendant Luka Bakoč is still unavailable to the judicial authorities and did not come to the the main trial.
The president of the special council of judges, Nada Rabrenović, accepted the proposal of the Special State Prosecutor's Office to try Bakoč in absentia. The judge made a decision that will be handed to the defense.
Lawyer Dina Šabotić told "Vijesta" that she will file an appeal because she believes that the conditions for a trial in absentia have not been met.
"Acting judge Nada Rabrenović announced at today's hearing of the main hearing that she has made a decision for a trial in absentia for my client. I have not received the decision yet, so I have no insight into the reasons for making this decision, but I believe that the conditions for making the same have not been met. so I will file an appeal," said Šabotić.
At the previous main trial, which was scheduled for March 15, the defendant did not appear in the courtroom of the High Court. That's why judge Nada Rabrenović issued a national warrant.
Defendant Bakoč did not appear even at the postponed main hearing on January 31, 2024. The President of the Council of Judges, Nada Rabrenović, ordered the detention of Bakoč due to unjustified absence, after the representative of the indictment, special prosecutor Vukas Radonjić, proposed to the court to order the detention of Bakoč, bearing in mind that he did not inform the court or his lawyer about the reasons for his absence, which the court accepted and ordered his detention.
Then Judge Rabrenović reminded her that he did not appear at the hearing scheduled for July 7, 2023, as well as at the main hearing scheduled for November 16, 2023.
The Special State Prosecutor's Office filed an indictment against the defendants Miloš and Vesna Medenica, Darko Lalović, Vasilij Petrović, Bojan and Marko Popović, Marko Vučinić, Milorad Medenica, Luka Bakoč, Petar Milutinović, Ivana Kovačević, Radomir Raičević, Marjan Bevenja, Stevo Karanikić and Goran Jovanović. and the company "Kopad Company", for criminal acts - creation of a criminal organization, smuggling, giving and receiving bribes, illegal influence and inducing illegal influence, abuse of official position, drug smuggling, illegal possession of weapons, causing serious bodily harm and preventing evidence.
Miloš Medenica is accused of having created a criminal organization in 2019, whose members were his mother Vesna and other defendants, with the aim of smuggling cigarettes and illegally influencing the judicial authorities, and for the purpose of acquiring illegal profits and power.
It is alleged that, in co-perpetration with the accused members of a criminal organization, he smuggled cigarettes from the Free Customs Zone of the port of Bar, avoiding the measures of customs supervision, with the help of false documents and paying bribes to customs officials.
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