Nis student Mateja Nikolic faces prosecutor a day late
Detained on the evening of October 7, Nikolic was not brought before the higher public prosecutor on October 8. His lawyer says police lacked resources; the hearing's outcome is not yet known.
Mateja Nikolic (24), a student at the Faculty of Law in Nis who was detained on the evening of October 7, was not brought before the higher public prosecutor on October 8, although the hearing had been announced for that day. It was moved to October 9, and as of this writing there is no word on whether it took place or what the prosecutor’s office decided. Nikolic has been ordered held for up to 48 hours, and he is suspected of violent behavior at a sporting event or public gathering.
Lawyer Vladan Mancic, who is also a parliamentary candidate on the Students Win list, told reporters in Nis why he was not brought in:
“I was given an explanation that the police did not have the resources today, because of other tasks, to bring my client in for questioning.”
Mancic added that Nikolic would appear before the prosecutor “tomorrow,” meaning October 9, and would hold a press conference afterward. The articles reviewed contain no comment from the police or the prosecutor’s office on that explanation.
What is known about the grounds for suspicion?
According to a statement from the Interior Ministry, Nikolic was arrested on the order of the Higher Public Prosecutor’s Office in Nis. The ministry says:
“He is suspected of having pushed a 26-year-old participant in another public gathering yesterday at a public rally in the center of Nis.”
The ministry also said the woman was treated at the University Clinical Center Nis, “after which she was released to recover at home,” and that Nikolic, along with a criminal complaint, would be brought before the higher public prosecutor. This is a suspicion, not an established finding of guilt.
The first information about the detention, according to Danas, came from Aleksandar Vucic, the head of the United Serbia list, on a program on Informer television on the evening of October 7. He said Nikolic had attacked an SNS activist and added: “They have an incredible grudge against women. I have never seen that in my life.” Only Vucic named the activist. The Interior Ministry did not confirm her name, so we do not give it.
Mancic rejects the accusation. He told the Beta agency:
“He is absolutely not responsible for anything, he did not push anyone, let alone hit or injure anyone, as the regime media are reporting.”
He told N1: “There was no attack of any kind. If there was aggression, it came from the other side.” He asked for surveillance camera footage from the intersection near the National Theater and the court. According to Mancic, the detention order cites “influence on witnesses” as the reason, and that order has not been made public or confirmed by the Interior Ministry or the prosecutor’s office.
Nikolic himself spoke out in a video recorded in the police van. According to Danas, he said he tried to cross the pedestrian crossing toward the National Theater to reach the Students List stand, and that two SNS members blocked him. Beta reports that he had crossed the street and was only then prevented from reaching the stand. According to Beta, he was taken by van to the Medijana station and then, in handcuffs, to the Nis correctional facility.
What happened on the street in Nis?
On October 8 at 5 p.m., the Students List held a rally titled “Even Stronger Against Injustice.” Danas and Naissus give different locations, the Basic Court and the new Higher Court building, so the sources do not agree on exactly where it was held. The crowd then marched toward the police building. SNS activists set up stands in front of the National Theater at the same time and followed the column.
Two scuffles were recorded. Police stepped in between the students’ stewards and the SNS activists, and according to available information there were no serious injuries. Milena Petrovic, a Students List representative, addressed the crowd in front of the court:
“With this case you have moved to a higher level, using women as actors will not work for you.”
Irena Ljubomirovic, a professor and a representative of the list, told N1: “You know that wherever students set up stands, the progressives show up right away.” N1 says it received no answer from the SNS to its request for someone to speak for the party.
Natalija Jovanovic, the former dean of the Faculty of Philosophy in Nis, claims that on October 7 she was attacked by the same activist who reported Nikolic: she says the woman threw a brochure at her from a car and hit her in the face. According to Danas, the police officers she approached told her to “avoid provocations,” while N1 writes that an officer ignored her request. Jovanovic told Danas: “Aleksandar Vucic presented a bully as a victim.” She announced a criminal complaint. The articles reviewed contain no police response to her claims and no statement from the activist.
What is still unclear?
The sources also disagree about how October 8 unfolded: Danas wrote at 2:37 p.m. that the hearing was under way, while Nova reported at 7:27 p.m., citing the lawyer, that it had not taken place. Naissus writes that the hearing was postponed to October 9. After it, the prosecutor’s office can let Nikolic mount his defense while free or propose detention of up to 30 days, which Mancic told Beta.
