Commission finds systemic failings at Belgrade prosecutors' office; recommends charges against a prosecutor

The Commission of the Supreme Public Prosecutor's Office in Serbia has concluded that the Belgrade Higher Public Prosecutor's Office, led by Chief Public Prosecutor Nenad Stefanović, committed systemic failings across several politically sensitive cases, including the alleged use of a sound cannon during the 15 March 2025 protest, the death of a 25‑year‑old student on 26 March 2026, and decisions on pardons.

In its findings the Commission describes selective application of the law, biased handling of evidence, unlawful searches and abuses of prosecutorial authority, and places overarching responsibility on Nenad Stefanović for how the office was managed.

On the protest case dated 15 March 2025, the Commission concluded that prosecutors did not carry out an adequate, impartial investigation into the alleged use of an acoustic weapon but instead sought to confirm a predetermined conclusion that no such weapon had been used. The report says prosecutors overemphasised facts that supported their view while disregarding material that might point to a different outcome.

The Commission notes procedural errors in how the case was registered and handled: the file was recorded in the KTR register and an internal memorandum was issued instead of a formal decision to dismiss the criminal complaint, which prevented victims from filing an appeal with a higher prosecutor and, according to the report, amounted to a violation of Article 13 of the European Convention on Human Rights. It also records that roughly 150 citizens who testified, medical records and findings by the German expert team Earshot were effectively sidelined, while prosecutors asked the Security Information Agency (BIA) to check whether 154 witnesses were connected to political parties.

Investigations, searches and measures against critics

Instead of investigating the possible use of the sound cannon, the Belgrade office launched actions against people who publicly asserted its use, including military analyst Aleksandar Radić, subjecting him to multiple investigative measures and searches amid suspicions of crimes related to calls for violent change of the constitutional order.

Regarding the death of a 25‑year‑old student at the Faculty of Philosophy on 26 March 2026, the Commission found further legal breaches. Although a court order authorised seizure of CCTV footage for a specific time window, prosecutors orally requested and police seized entire servers from both the Faculty of Philosophy and the Rectorate, taking data unrelated to the inquiry — including student and staff databases. Seven paper bags containing 26 recorders with minutes from student plenums, documents of student parliaments and other materials were removed from the faculty, and banners, pamphlets, badges, stickers and sprays were taken from the Rectorate. The Commission states that police interviews focused on the activities and organisation of the student movement rather than the circumstances of the death, and judged that the tragic event was used to collect information about the student movement.

Rector Vladan Đokić described the operation in stark terms: "The police did not enter the University of Belgrade to investigate, but to humiliate," the Commission report cites.

As remedial steps the Commission recommends disciplinary proceedings against several prosecutors, criminal prosecution of prosecutor Miodrag Marković for suspected abuse of office and his temporary removal while an accountability procedure is pending, and examination of whether senior office leadership influenced how Marković acted in the sound‑cannon case. It also proposes probing the disciplinary responsibility of Chief Public Prosecutor Nenad Stefanović and initiating procedures for his removal. In its final summary the Commission lists selective law enforcement, premature rejection of complaints, delays, unlawful searches and misuses of hierarchical powers as systemic defects in the Belgrade office's work.

Photo: Printskrin