Hrtkovci: Indictment for Axe Murder and Burning of Body

The Higher Public Prosecutor’s Office in Sremska Mitrovica has indicted A. Dj. (19) of Hrtkovci, near Ruma, for aggravated murder. The indictment concerns the death of M. P. (48) of Platicevo, whose body was found burned in the Hrtkovci countryside in April. News of the indictment was published on October 20 and 21, six months after the crime.

Sources differ on the defendant’s age: Kurir and Telegraf say he is 19, while Novosti says 20.

What is the defendant charged with?

According to the indictment, A. Dj. is accused of killing M. P. with an axe in mid-April, after an argument and a physical fight. He then allegedly drove the body to a nearby forest, poured gasoline on it and set it on fire. Kurir and Telegraf report that this is suspected to have happened the following night, in an attempt to cover up the crime.

Novosti adds that the defendant allegedly had no accomplices.

What is known about the timeline?

Kurir and Telegraf say M. P. was killed on April 19. His half-brother reported him missing to the police. A Hrtkovci resident told Kurir that the family grew suspicious when the man did not come home from work for two days.

Novosti writes that M. P. was listed as missing for several days and that his body was found in the forest on April 20. The sources, then, do not agree on the sequence: the resident speaks of two days of absence, and both April 19 and April 20 appear as the day of the killing and the day the body was found.

According to unofficial information relayed by Kurir and Telegraf, M. P. occasionally stayed at the suspect’s house, where the conflict is believed to have taken place. The same sources say he was in a romantic relationship with the suspect’s mother. Telegraf notes that the circumstances of the crime will be established during the proceedings.

Novosti also reports that the defendant spent that evening at his father’s home, said he needed some papers, and told family members he was traveling to Switzerland, allegedly for a job he had found there.

What happens after the indictment?

A. Dj. has been held in the detention unit of the Sremska Mitrovica penitentiary since his arrest, and will be brought from there to the trial. He is presumed innocent until a final verdict.

A source at the Sremska Mitrovica court told Novosti: “The indictment has been filed and is now under review by the Court of Appeals in Novi Sad.” According to the same source, once the indictment is confirmed, a preparatory hearing will be scheduled, followed by the main trial.