Lazarevac: Bats in Jeep at SNS Office, Two Officers Hurt
Interior Ministry says police were attacked around 6:30 p.m. and two officers were hurt. Earlier, citizens pulled bats from a jeep outside SNS offices, which the statement never mentions.
The Interior Ministry (MUP) said this evening that police were attacked around 6:30 p.m. in Lazarevac, outside the offices of the Serbian Progressive Party (SNS) municipal board, and that two police officers were injured. Earlier the same day, at the same spot, citizens opened a jeep full of baseball bats, according to N1’s report. The MUP statement mentions neither the jeep nor the bats.
What does the Interior Ministry say about the attack?
The statement does not say how serious the injuries are. The ministry described the attack this way:
The Ministry of Interior most strongly condemns the attack on police officers that took place this evening, around 6:30 p.m., in Lazarevac, in which two police officers were injured. During this incident, a group of persons physically assaulted members of the police, using stones, pyrotechnics and other dangerous objects.
The ministry adds that it is working with the competent prosecutor’s office to identify and detain everyone who took part in the attack, and that they will be prosecuted in accordance with the law. It urged citizens to refrain from violence “so that the election process proceeds peacefully, safely and in accordance with the law.” The statement does not say who the attackers were.
What does N1 report from the scene?
According to an N1 reporter who was outside the offices, citizens noticed a white jeep with its trunk open and a large number of baseball bats in it, and called the police. Mobile teams of the Student List also came to the scene. When police arrived, the men from the jeep tried to leave, but citizens blocked their way, N1 reports.
A Golf with Novi Sad plates then pulled up. Men from that vehicle attacked the gathered citizens, who defended themselves, and a clash followed. Citizens claim police dragged their feet on the investigation, so they broke the vehicle’s windows themselves and took out the bats. At the time of reporting the situation was calm, and citizens remained outside the offices demanding accountability.
The N1 text we read contains no attack on police, and MUP does not mention a clash between citizens and the men from the vehicle. The two reports describe the same place and the same evening, but not the same events.
What does councillor Olivera Popovic say?
Councillor Olivera Popovic, whose party is not named in the source, told the portal Pravo u centar: “Our people tried to get the police to do their job, but they did not succeed.” About the broken glass on the car she said: “Since the police did not react, someone broke the rear window of the car. That was not me.”
Popovic claims that she then took metal and wooden objects out of the vehicle, but was not allowed to inspect the inside any further. She added: “Allegedly they will bring a team that will carry out the investigation and determine everything that is in the car.” The owner of the vehicle has not been officially identified.
Hammers, uniforms, a search and one detained person
BosnaInfo writes that a video from social media shows hammers, rods and other metal objects in the car besides the bats. N1 also reports that parts of police uniforms were allegedly found, which has not been officially confirmed. According to BosnaInfo, citing N1, police took one person out of the SNS offices into custody.
The portal 021, in its live blog, writes that at 6:55 p.m. the public prosecutor refused to issue a warrant to search the SNS offices, and that at 7:35 p.m. people who had allegedly attacked citizens earlier were led out of the offices. The same blog says SNS supporters earlier attacked citizens with poles and shovels. The sources diverge here: one speaks of one person, another of several, and the MUP statement does not mention any detention.
How does B92 portray the events?
In its election day report, B92 writes that “blockaders” attacked MUP members with stones and pyrotechnics outside the SNS Lazarevac municipal board offices. The word “blockaders” is that outlet’s choice: MUP speaks of a “group of persons” in its statement, and in the B92 text we read the label is not attributed to a named official.
What is still unknown?
A response from the SNS Lazarevac municipal board about the bats and the vehicle was not found by the time this text was closed. It is also unknown who attacked the police officers, and how serious the two officers’ injuries are.
Polling stations in Serbia close at 8 p.m. According to the Republic Electoral Commission (RIK), turnout by 6 p.m. was 64.89 percent.
