The Special Court in Belgrade rejected Montenegro’s extradition request against Serbian citizen Nemanja Ristic as unfounded, B92 reports.
There is no right of appeal against this court decision, but the case file will be submitted ex officio to the Appellate Court in Belgrade for a final decision.
Montenegro required Ristic’s extradition on suspicion that he participated in planning terrorist acts before parliamentary elections last year.
The court chamber issued a decision on 8 February rejecting the extradition request of Montenegrin Justice Ministry against Ristic as unfounded, the court spokesperson Bojana Stankovic told the Tanjug news agency.
The Special Prosecutor’s Office of Montenegro suspects Ristic of creating a criminal organisation and attempted terrorism.
As Stankovic said, the court in Belgrade had in mind the relevant provisions of the Act on Mutual Legal Assistance in Criminal Matters, regulations of the Criminal Code, the Criminal Procedure Code and the provisions of the Extradition Treaty signed between Serbia and Montenegro on 29 May 2009.
On the basis of legal provisions and the fact situation described in the Montenegro prosecutors’ order which charges Ristic with the crimes committed on the territory of Serbia, the trial chamber decided that in this case conditions for Ristic’s extradition are not fulfilled.
However, the High Court in Kragujevac in late January approved Montenegro’s extradition request against Predrag Bogicevic, who is suspected of participating in planning terrorist acts before parliamentary elections last year.
Kragujevac Court decided that the conditions for Bogicevic’s extradition were fulfilled. Bogicevic’s attorney appealed against the decision and the Appellate Court in Kragujevac is to decide about it.
Serbia and Montenegro have signed a bilateral extradition agreement, which contains the conditions of extradition.
Bogicevic and Ristic were arrested on 13 January in Kragujevac and Belgrade respectively upon international warrant issued by Montenegro.
At the beginning of December 2016, Montenegro issued warrants against two of them and two Russian citizens on suspicion of organising a criminal group, which planned to break into the Parliament on the election day and to arrest and assassinate then PM Milo Djukanovic.
