Nemanja Milić from Obrenovac, originally from Babin Most in Kosovo, has claimed he was subjected to physical and psychological abuse yesterday by members of the Kosovo Police after an incident at the Merdare border crossing.
Milić, who works at the Tiršova Children’s Hospital in Belgrade, told KoSSev that he was detained for nearly eight hours at the police station in Podujevo, where he says he was beaten, insulted, and coerced to sign a confession for an offense he denies committing.
The incident took place as he was returning from Kosovo after visiting for the traditional Mitrovdan memorial services. While waiting in line at the Merdare crossing with his relative and his relative’s mother, Milić briefly exited the vehicle to assess the length of the queue. Upon his return, he noticed an Albanian man kicking the door of their car and accusing his relative of hitting him.
“I asked what was happening and why he was acting so aggressively,” Milić recounted.
“He claimed we had hit him, but there was no visible damage. And besides, I wasn’t even there at the time of the alleged incident.”
A Kosovo Police officer who witnessed the altercation reportedly told them: “Everything looks fine. I don’t know what your problem is.”
However, a police patrol soon arrived and, according to Milić, only questioned him before taking him into custody. He claims the Albanian man involved in the incident drove after them but “disappeared” en route.
“Shkija, sign the confession and apologize”
Milić alleges that the mistreatment began upon arriving at the Podujevo station. He was taken to a room he believes was not monitored by cameras. One of the officers, speaking in English, told him: “I don’t have much time for you,” while gripping his gun and making threatening remarks.
“He asked me if I was a patriot, then demanded I sign a confession and apologize to the Albanian man,” Milić said. He refused, insisting on the right to write his own statement.
According to him, this refusal triggered a series of assaults and insults.
“He called me ‘Shkija’ (a derogatory term for Serbs) and hit me several times.”
Milić said the abuse continued intermittently over several hours and that members of special police units were present during some of the assaults.
At one point, a police officer addressed him in Serbian: “You’re not signing?” It was only then, Milić says, that he was handed a document and a pen to write his own version of the events.
More blows before release
Milić claims he was struck several more times—once by a special unit officer as he was preparing to leave.
“He told me: ‘Sit down again.’ I asked why, and he said, ‘You’ll see why,’ before hitting me again,” he said.
Eventually, he was released with the words: “Shkija, go home. Let this be a lesson not to cause trouble.”
Medical Documentation
After leaving Kosovo by taxi and returning to Obrenovac, Milić underwent a medical examination. He shared the documentation with KoSSev, which confirms he sustained a hematoma on the right side of his head and injuries to the right side of his neck.
He said he refused medical examination in Kosovo due to his traumatic experience in the police station.
KoSSev contacted the Kosovo Police, both in Pristina and Podujevo, earlier today for comment. No response had been received by the time of publication.
Preuzimanje i objavljivanje tekstova sa portala KoSSev nije dozvoljeno bez navođenja izvora. Hvala na poštovanju etike novinarske profesije.
