SAJ Commander Igor Zmiric Detained, Removed From Duty
After the First Basic Court in Belgrade ordered detention for nine members of the JZO, the Interior Ministry temporarily removed SAJ commander Igor Zmiric. His deputy now leads the unit.
Igor Zmiric, commander of the Special Anti-Terrorist Unit (SAJ), has been temporarily removed from duty, the Interior Ministry announced. The decision follows an order from the First Basic Court in Belgrade, which on November 6 ordered detention for nine current and former members of the Protection Unit for Certain Persons and Facilities (JZO). Zmiric is among them. The unit is now led by the deputy commander, whom the ministry did not name.
What did the ministry say about Zmiric?
In its statement, the ministry cites the detention as the ground for removing the commander:
“The Ministry of Interior of the Republic of Serbia informs the public that on November 6, the First Basic Court in Belgrade issued a ruling ordering detention for the commander of the Special Anti-Terrorist Unit (SAJ), Igor Zmiric, on the basis of which a ruling was issued on his temporary removal from duty, under the Law on Police. The deputy commander will take over leadership of the Special Anti-Terrorist Unit.”
The statement does not name the deputy or say how long the removal will last, and it cites only the Law on Police as its legal basis.
What are the nine JZO members suspected of?
They are suspected of abusing and torturing students and citizens who were taken to the Serbian government garage after the protests last August. Guilt has not been established, and the detention order is a measure taken during proceedings. According to our earlier reporting, Zmiric was previously held for 48 hours and questioned on suspicion of torture in that garage.
Who is Igor Zmiric?
Zmiric is 46 and was born in Sombor. He began his service in the Yugoslav Army, in the 63rd Parachute Brigade, then moved to the Gendarmerie and later to the Counterterrorism Unit. In 2004 he was named the ministry’s best special forces officer and received the “Jakov Nenadovic” gold medal.
He moved to SAJ after the Counterterrorism Unit was abolished in 2016. In 2019 he was appointed assistant commander of the Protection Unit for Certain Persons and Facilities. From 2021 he served as an adviser to the Gendarmerie commander, and in 2023 he returned to the same post of assistant commander of the JZO. He is a multiple Serbian parachuting champion.
Mondo, which published his biography, also reports that he attended the Law Enforcement Academy in Budapest. The ministry’s statement did not say how the court’s decision will affect the work of the unit itself.
