Zemun Shelter Shooting Suspect Silent, Detention Sought
Suspect A.S., 52, stayed silent before Belgrade prosecutors, who have requested detention and, for the first time, detailed how many shots were fired at the Zemun animal shelter.
The man suspected of opening fire at an animal shelter in Zemun was questioned at the Higher Public Prosecutor’s Office in Belgrade and said nothing. A.S., 52, used his legal right not to present a defense, so he stayed silent throughout the hearing. Right after the questioning, prosecutors requested that he be placed in detention.
The order to conduct an investigation charges him with three criminal offenses in concurrence.
What the prosecution’s order says
The charge is illegal production, possession, carrying and trafficking of weapons and explosive materials, in concurrence with light bodily injury and causing general danger.
Prosecutors have named the weapon for the first time: a semi-automatic Zastava M57 pistol, 7.62 millimeter caliber, with a magazine holding an undetermined number of rounds. There is reasonable suspicion the suspect carried it without authorization from July 29 to 30.
How the attack allegedly unfolded
The timing is now precise. The shooting happened around 9:40 a.m. on July 30 at the shelter’s premises in Zemun, preceded by a brief verbal argument with his employer, the injured party D.C.
Two shots were fired at the employer. One grazed his right thigh, causing a light bodily injury.
The suspect then allegedly noticed the shelter’s worker, the injured party R.R. He told him not to call the police and to leave his phone on the table. The worker retreated into a barrack to take cover, and the suspect fired two more shots in that direction. R.R. was not physically hurt. Prosecutors classify that part of the attack as causing general danger, since the firearm created a risk to his life and body.
Why are prosecutors seeking detention?
The request went to a preliminary proceedings judge at the Higher Court in Belgrade, citing three reasons at once:
- risk of flight
- possibility of influencing witnesses
- danger that he could repeat the offenses in a short period
The court will decide on the request, and detention at this stage can last up to 30 days. Both injured parties, the shelter owner and the worker, remain witnesses in the investigation. That is precisely why prosecutors list witness influence as a separate ground: both men were on the shelter grounds at the moment of the shooting.
What has changed since the day of the shooting
When we first reported on the attack on July 30, the address given was Belaricka Street in Batajnica, a neighborhood within the Zemun municipality, and the legal classification of the offense was not yet known. It remained an open question whether the case would be treated as attempted murder. The answer has now arrived with the hearing, and it is different: no attempted murder, but a weapons charge in concurrence with light bodily injury and causing general danger. The difference is measured in the sentence prescribed by law.
The motive has shifted too. On the first day it was unknown, with unofficial information suggesting the suspect and the wounded man knew each other from before. Prosecutors now cite a direct trigger, a brief quarrel with his employer, which moves the attack from a conflict between two acquaintances into the realm of a working relationship.
Two details from the first hours did not make it into the prosecution’s statement. There is no mention of the axe he allegedly used to threaten another worker with, according to information circulating at the time, nor of the claim that the wounded owner disarmed him with his bare hands. The investigation order sticks only to what prosecutors currently consider provable.
Staying silent at the hearing counts neither for nor against him, since it is a right the suspect retains until the end of the proceedings. Until a final verdict, A.S. remains a suspect, and guilt is determined in court.
