Mali Skole trial: prosecution seeks life, verdict July 7

The trial over the killing of Zoran Uskokovic the Younger, better known as Mali Skole, has reached its final stage. After closing arguments were heard, the Special Court in Belgrade scheduled the verdict for July 7. Prosecutors have asked for the harshest penalty for two of the defendants, while the defense is pressing for an acquittal.

According to the indictment, the defendants are accused of operating as an organized criminal group set up to carry out an aggravated killing as an act of ruthless revenge. In its closing statement, the prosecution proposed life imprisonment for two defendants, identified by the initials N. Z., named as the organizer, and M. K. For the remaining defendants, prosecutors sought prison terms in line with each one’s role in the events.

How was Mali Skole killed?

Zoran Uskokovic the Younger was killed on January 29, 2021 in Rakovica. He was hit by two bullets, one to the head and one to the neck, and according to the investigation the killer was disguised as an elderly man and had waited for hours before opening fire. The way the attack was carried out is a central plank of the prosecution’s case that this was a planned and organized crime rather than a sudden act of violence.

The case also has a longer backstory. The victim was the son of Zoran Uskokovic, who was killed in 2000 on Vidikovac. That places the killing of Mali Skole within a chain of reprisals that has burdened Belgrade’s criminal underworld for years and is the subject of several separate court proceedings.

What is the defense disputing before the verdict?

The defense rests its argument on the evidence itself. Lawyers contend that the evidence presented does not support the indictment and that neither shared intent nor an organized group has been established. They are particularly opposed to the use of communications taken from the encrypted Sky app.

The defense argued that the evidence presented does not back up the indictment and that Sky communications cannot be used as proof. The question of whether Sky messages are admissible has shadowed a string of organized crime cases in Serbia in recent years, because the bulk of the indictment often rests on them. If the court accepts the objection, the prosecution’s evidentiary structure weakens significantly. If it rejects it, the path opens toward a conviction that could carry a life sentence.

By July 7, the court will have to choose between two fundamentally opposed versions, a planned settling of scores by an organized group or an insufficiently supported indictment. Do you think Sky messages should be allowed as evidence in court?