Ub Attack: Luka Jovanovic Reports 15 to 20 Assailants
Activist Luka Jovanovic told police a group of 15 to 20 men attacked him in Ub. He says they are close to Darko Glisic, but there is no official confirmation.
Luka Jovanovic, an activist from Ub, says in his statement to police that a group of 15 to 20 men attacked him on the night between October 25 and 26. He says they are close to Darko Glisic, a member of the Serbian Progressive Party (SNS). The attack in Ub took place around 1:30 a.m., on the first night after the parliamentary elections. As of publication we have no official response from the police, the prosecutor’s office, Glisic or the SNS, so everything below is the account of the injured party, not an established fact.
Jovanovic claims he has been the target of thugs several times before. No one he names has been found guilty of anything, which is why only initials appear in this text.
What does Jovanovic say in his statement to police?
Nova.rs reports that it saw the statement Jovanovic gave to police. According to that statement, the incident began when his friend Aleksandar J. received a call saying their acquaintances had been attacked in a park. Jovanovic, Aleksandar J. and Nenad R. then went to the town square. There they found Sofija V. and Filip A., who was lying on the ground with visible injuries to his forearm and head.
Soon afterward, he says, three or four passenger cars came down Vuk Karadzic Street. Between 15 and 20 men got out and moved quickly toward them. They were carrying objects that looked like clubs from a distance. Among them, he says, he recognized Dj. B., who got out of the first car, a gold Volvo.
According to the statement, the men surrounded them and attacked Nenad R. Jovanovic says he tried to defend him and swung a piece of wood, which he had earlier taken from the car, at one of the men. He then ran toward the parking lot near the supermarket. M. V. chased him, he claims, with a knife in his hand.
Jovanovic then went to the emergency department of the Ub Health Center. There, as the official note states, he waited for police to arrive.
What did he tell Nova.rs?
Jovanovic told Nova.rs he is fine, but that his friend was hurt. “He has a knocked-out tooth and injuries. It all happened last night around half past one.” He adds: “They surrounded us and attacked us.” Of the attackers he says: “These are people close to Darko Glisic, his people, and it is not the first time they have attacked.”
In his words, the threats did not stop even at the police station. He claims the attackers made threats while giving their own statements last night. “This is not the only incident,” Jovanovic says, adding that in front of the police station, in the police yard, S. P. drew a pistol on his friends. According to him, police detained the attackers. We have no official confirmation of any of these claims.
What is known about earlier threats?
Jovanovic also told police that he feels unsafe. He says J. S., whom he describes as part of the same group, had threatened him before. According to his statement, there is a video recording of those threats, and a criminal complaint has been filed.
What happens next after the attack in Ub?
Those attacked were due to give statements today at the prosecutor’s office in Ub. Jovanovic says they gathered in front of the prosecutor’s building. What the prosecutors will decide on the basis of those statements is not yet known.
We have previously reported on other cases of election-related violence, in Lazarevac and Pavlovac. The attack in Ub is a separate event. Jovanovic’s statement is so far the only description of that night, and neither police nor prosecutors have given their version. Until they do, the names and accusations in the statement remain the claims of one side.
