Murder of the Zec family
Encyclopedia
The murder of the Zec family occurred in Zagreb
, Croatia
on December 7, 1991, during the Croatian War of Independence
, when the squad of five Croatian militiamen with government support shot dead three members of an ethnic Serb Zec family: the father Mihajlo Zec, his wife Marija and their 12-year-old daughter Aleksandra.
The murderers were apprehended, but were released after a most dubious court decision in 1992. After a long period of apparent negligence and cover-up, the Zec family murder was never addressed by the Croatian legal system, but the government agreed to compensate the surviving family members in a 2004 court settlement. In the meantime, the main perpetrators of this murder were given extended prison sentences on separate similar crimes.
.
Four of the men were members of Tomislav Merčep
's paramilitary unit, reserve units of the Croatian Ministry of Internal Affairs
. In a later leak of President Franjo Tuđman's transcripts, Merčep was quoted in 1995 as telling Tuđman how the murder was ordered by one of his comrades Zvonimir Trusić, who in turn was, according to Merčep, subordinated to the then Minister of Foreign Affairs Zvonimir Šeparović and then-Minister of the Interior
Ivan Vekić. This testimony was never investigated by a court.
Mihajlo Zec ran out on the street, and tried to escape, but Siniša Rimac shot him from a distance of thirty meters. After that, they tied up his daughter Aleksandra Zec and her mother Marija Zec, threw them into a van with no license plates and drove to the mountain lodge on the Medvednica
mountain.
Aleksandra's sister Gordana Zec and brother Dušan Zec, managed to survive by hiding around the house, and soon fled to their grandmother located in Banja Luka
, Republika Srpska
.
Once on Sljeme
, Aleksandra and Marija were killed and dumped into a pit of garbage.
Subsequent investigations revealed that Siniša Rimac, who had previously killed her father, sought that Aleksandra would not be killed, but all others were against it, because she was a witness. Aleksandra was murdered by being shot in head with an automatic rifle Heckler & Koch
, by Munib Suljić.
There were however testimonies of witnesses who saw Siniša Rimac kill Mihajlo Zec. Others testified that Igor Mikola had confessed to the killing.
Police expertise at the time proved that the weapons seized from the accused was identical to those used to commit the murder. The forensic examination of the perpetrators' van proved that it was used to transport Aleksandra Zec and her mother, Marija Zec. The County Court in Zagreb did not take any of this into account and rendered a verdict of not guilty. On February 19, 1992, the Supreme Court of Croatia reviewed the case. On July 9, 1992, the County Court in Zagreb rendered another not-guilty verdict, leading to the murderers' release.
The judicial system of the Republic of Croatia was later vehemently criticized for this miserable failure, as the most prominent legal experts argued the verdict was far-fetched and included a highly dubious interpretation of legal provisions, while strong political pressure was exerted on the court.
and in fact progressed to a very high rank in the Croatian army. Igor Mikola escaped the limelight by moving to Herzegovina
, while Suzana Živković practically disappeared.
On 30 May 1995, Siniša Rimac received the Order of Nikola Šubić Zrinski
, a high recognition for war-time heroism, awarded by the former president Franjo Tuđman. Part of the Croatian political scene saw this as an affirmation of the Zec murder and desirable behavior.
According to the Croatian weekly magazine Nacional
, the key political protection to killers was extended by president Tuđman himself. Allegedly, in 1992 Stjepan Mesić
requested from president Tuđman for the case to be resolved as soon as possible, but Tuđman replied: "Let it be, maybe I will still need those guys".
The so-called Zec case became well known in Croatian media after being reported by numerous non-governmental organizations and publicized by numerous newspapers and several television programmes.
Journalist Davor Butković stated that Vladimir Šeks
, who at the time of the original trial was a public prosecutor of Republic of Croatia, admitted to him that he was ashamed of the Zec case, and that he felt guilty because the killers were not punished. In 2004, Šeks told Nacionals Berislav Jelinić he was sorry, but was not actually responsible.
In 2005, Munib Suljić, Igor Mikola and Siniša Rimac were convicted for murder of an unknown citizen named Saša (who was in fact one Aleksandar Antić) in the so-called "Pakračka poljana" case, where the same unit committed numerous crimes against other Serbs of Croatia
near Pakrac
in 1991. That case was first brought to trial in 1997, but went through several court instances in 1999 and 2001. Suljić, the first shooter in that case, eventually received a sentence of 10 years. Siniša Rimac was sentenced to eight years. Igor Mikola was convicted as an accessory to murder as well as the illegal detention and extortion of Miloš Ivošević, Radom Pajić and Marko Grujić, and sentenced to five years in prison. Two other men were convicted of the latter crime with Mikola. After the verdict, Siniša Rimac was arrested, while Suljić and Mikola failed to appear at the sentencing.
A year earlier, Igor Mikola was extradited from Bosnia and Herzegovina
to Croatia after serving a 27-month prison sentence in the Zenica prison
for attempted extortion of one Mladen Žulj, owner of a gas station in Grude
.
Nebojša Hodak was sentenced in June 2005 to one year in prison in an unrelated case of attempted extortion.
Munib Suljić had personally surrendered to the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia
in The Hague
in June 2006. He was extradited to Croatia to serve his 12-year prison sentence, but died in a prison hospital in Svetošimunska street in Zagreb on 25 August 2006.
government agreed to a settlement and compensation of 1,500,000 Croatian kuna
.
There are initiatives to call a street in Zagreb after Aleksandra Zec, as prominent individuals such as the writer Zoran Ferić
seek to raise a monument to her.
Zagreb
Zagreb is the capital and the largest city of the Republic of Croatia. It is in the northwest of the country, along the Sava river, at the southern slopes of the Medvednica mountain. Zagreb lies at an elevation of approximately above sea level. According to the last official census, Zagreb's city...
, Croatia
Croatia
Croatia , officially the Republic of Croatia , is a unitary democratic parliamentary republic in Europe at the crossroads of the Mitteleuropa, the Balkans, and the Mediterranean. Its capital and largest city is Zagreb. The country is divided into 20 counties and the city of Zagreb. Croatia covers ...
on December 7, 1991, during the Croatian War of Independence
Croatian War of Independence
The Croatian War of Independence was fought from 1991 to 1995 between forces loyal to the government of Croatia—which had declared independence from the Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia —and the Serb-controlled Yugoslav People's Army and local Serb forces, with the JNA ending its combat...
, when the squad of five Croatian militiamen with government support shot dead three members of an ethnic Serb Zec family: the father Mihajlo Zec, his wife Marija and their 12-year-old daughter Aleksandra.
The murderers were apprehended, but were released after a most dubious court decision in 1992. After a long period of apparent negligence and cover-up, the Zec family murder was never addressed by the Croatian legal system, but the government agreed to compensate the surviving family members in a 2004 court settlement. In the meantime, the main perpetrators of this murder were given extended prison sentences on separate similar crimes.
Murder
In the evening around 11:00pm on 7 December 1991, in the Zec family home in Zagreb, Croatia, a group of five people: Siniša Rimac, Munib Suljić, Igor Mikola, Nebojša Hodak and Suzana Živanović, invaded the premises with the intention to arrest Mihajlo Zec, a butcher by profession and the father of the family, because of his alleged links with rebel Krajina SerbsRepublic of Serbian Krajina
The Republic of Serbian Krajina was a self-proclaimed Serb entity within Croatia. Established in 1991, it was not recognized internationally. It formally existed from 1991 to 1995, having been initiated a year earlier via smaller separatist regions. The name Krajina means "frontier"...
.
Four of the men were members of Tomislav Merčep
Tomislav Merčep
Tomislav Merčep is a former Croatian politician and paramilitary during the Croatian War of Independence.A native of Vukovar, Merčep worked as an engineer before joining the Croatian Democratic Union in 1990...
's paramilitary unit, reserve units of the Croatian Ministry of Internal Affairs
Ministry of the Interior (Croatia)
The Ministry of the Interior of the Republic of Croatia is the ministry in the Government of Croatia which is in charge of state security among other roles...
. In a later leak of President Franjo Tuđman's transcripts, Merčep was quoted in 1995 as telling Tuđman how the murder was ordered by one of his comrades Zvonimir Trusić, who in turn was, according to Merčep, subordinated to the then Minister of Foreign Affairs Zvonimir Šeparović and then-Minister of the Interior
Ministry of the Interior (Croatia)
The Ministry of the Interior of the Republic of Croatia is the ministry in the Government of Croatia which is in charge of state security among other roles...
Ivan Vekić. This testimony was never investigated by a court.
Mihajlo Zec ran out on the street, and tried to escape, but Siniša Rimac shot him from a distance of thirty meters. After that, they tied up his daughter Aleksandra Zec and her mother Marija Zec, threw them into a van with no license plates and drove to the mountain lodge on the Medvednica
Medvednica
Medvednica is a mountain in central Croatia, just north of Zagreb and marking the southern border of the historic region of Zagorje. The highest peak, at 1,035 m, is Sljeme. Most of the area of Medvednica is a nature park , a type of preservation lesser than a national park...
mountain.
Aleksandra's sister Gordana Zec and brother Dušan Zec, managed to survive by hiding around the house, and soon fled to their grandmother located in Banja Luka
Banja Luka
-History:The name "Banja Luka" was first mentioned in a document dated February 6, 1494, but Banja Luka's history dates back to ancient times. There is a substantial evidence of the Roman presence in the region during the first few centuries A.D., including an old fort "Kastel" in the centre of...
, Republika Srpska
Republika Srpska
Republika Srpska is one of two main political entities of Bosnia and Herzegovina, the other being the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina...
.
Once on Sljeme
Šljeme
Šljeme is a village in the municipality of Ilijaš, Bosnia and Herzegovina.-References:...
, Aleksandra and Marija were killed and dumped into a pit of garbage.
Subsequent investigations revealed that Siniša Rimac, who had previously killed her father, sought that Aleksandra would not be killed, but all others were against it, because she was a witness. Aleksandra was murdered by being shot in head with an automatic rifle Heckler & Koch
Heckler & Koch
Heckler & Koch GmbH is a German defense manufacturing company that produces various small arms. Some of their products include the SA80, MP5 submachine gun, G3 automatic rifle, the G36 assault rifle, the HK 416, the MP7 personal defense weapon, the USP series of handguns, and the high-precision...
, by Munib Suljić.
Investigation
Just a few days after the crime, the police arrested the perpetrators, and during the early investigation they admitted to the liquidation and described it in detail. However, these confessions were made without the presence of their lawyers. This major procedural error meant that there were no legal witnesses of executions.There were however testimonies of witnesses who saw Siniša Rimac kill Mihajlo Zec. Others testified that Igor Mikola had confessed to the killing.
Police expertise at the time proved that the weapons seized from the accused was identical to those used to commit the murder. The forensic examination of the perpetrators' van proved that it was used to transport Aleksandra Zec and her mother, Marija Zec. The County Court in Zagreb did not take any of this into account and rendered a verdict of not guilty. On February 19, 1992, the Supreme Court of Croatia reviewed the case. On July 9, 1992, the County Court in Zagreb rendered another not-guilty verdict, leading to the murderers' release.
The judicial system of the Republic of Croatia was later vehemently criticized for this miserable failure, as the most prominent legal experts argued the verdict was far-fetched and included a highly dubious interpretation of legal provisions, while strong political pressure was exerted on the court.
Aftermath
After their release, Suljić and Hodak maintained a life of crime that was extensively covered in the newspapers, while Siniša Rimac became one of the bodyguards of the late Minister of Defence Gojko ŠušakGojko Šušak
Gojko Šušak was the Croatian Minister of Defence from 1991 to 1998. A Bosnian Croat emigreé to Canada, he entered the political life of Croat diaspora in North America, subsequently becoming a close friend and associate to Franjo Tuđman, the leader of the Croatian Democratic Union, a nationalistic...
and in fact progressed to a very high rank in the Croatian army. Igor Mikola escaped the limelight by moving to Herzegovina
Herzegovina
Herzegovina is the southern region of Bosnia and Herzegovina. While there is no official border distinguishing it from the Bosnian region, it is generally accepted that the borders of the region are Croatia to the west, Montenegro to the south, the canton boundaries of the Herzegovina-Neretva...
, while Suzana Živković practically disappeared.
On 30 May 1995, Siniša Rimac received the Order of Nikola Šubić Zrinski
Order of Nikola Šubić Zrinski
Order of Nikola Šubić Zrinski is 8th greatest order given by the Republic of Croatia.The medal is given to Croatian or foreign citizens for heroic acts during war, direct war danger or extraordinary circumstances in peace.-Recipients:...
, a high recognition for war-time heroism, awarded by the former president Franjo Tuđman. Part of the Croatian political scene saw this as an affirmation of the Zec murder and desirable behavior.
According to the Croatian weekly magazine Nacional
Nacional (weekly)
Nacional is a Croatian weekly newsmagazine published in Zagreb.-History:Nacional was started in 1995 by Denis Kuljiš, Ivo Pukanić and other journalists dissatisfied with the editorial policies of Croatian weekly newspaper Globus. Both publications were hostile to the ruling HDZ government...
, the key political protection to killers was extended by president Tuđman himself. Allegedly, in 1992 Stjepan Mesić
Stjepan Mesić
Stjepan "Stipe" Mesić is a Croatian politician and former President of Croatia. Before his ten-year presidential term between 2000 and 2010 he held the posts of Speaker of the Croatian Parliament , Prime Minister of Croatia , the last President of the Presidency of Yugoslavia , Secretary General...
requested from president Tuđman for the case to be resolved as soon as possible, but Tuđman replied: "Let it be, maybe I will still need those guys".
The so-called Zec case became well known in Croatian media after being reported by numerous non-governmental organizations and publicized by numerous newspapers and several television programmes.
Journalist Davor Butković stated that Vladimir Šeks
Vladimir Šeks
Vladimir Šeks is an influential Croatian politician, a member of the Croatian Democratic Union . He has been a representative in the Croatian Parliament since the nation's independence, and has held the posts of the Speaker of the Parliament as well as Deputy Prime Minister of the Government.Šeks...
, who at the time of the original trial was a public prosecutor of Republic of Croatia, admitted to him that he was ashamed of the Zec case, and that he felt guilty because the killers were not punished. In 2004, Šeks told Nacionals Berislav Jelinić he was sorry, but was not actually responsible.
In 2005, Munib Suljić, Igor Mikola and Siniša Rimac were convicted for murder of an unknown citizen named Saša (who was in fact one Aleksandar Antić) in the so-called "Pakračka poljana" case, where the same unit committed numerous crimes against other Serbs of Croatia
Serbs of Croatia
Višeslav of Serbia, a contemporary of Charlemagne , ruled the Županias of Neretva, Tara, Piva, Lim, his ancestral lands. According to the Royal Frankish Annals , Duke of Pannonia Ljudevit Posavski fled, during the Frankish invasion, from his seat in Sisak to the Serbs in western Bosnia, who...
near Pakrac
Pakrac
Pakrac is a town in western Slavonia, Croatia, population 4,852, total municipality population 8,482 . Pakrac is located on the road and railroad connecting the regions of Posavina and Podravina.-Name:...
in 1991. That case was first brought to trial in 1997, but went through several court instances in 1999 and 2001. Suljić, the first shooter in that case, eventually received a sentence of 10 years. Siniša Rimac was sentenced to eight years. Igor Mikola was convicted as an accessory to murder as well as the illegal detention and extortion of Miloš Ivošević, Radom Pajić and Marko Grujić, and sentenced to five years in prison. Two other men were convicted of the latter crime with Mikola. After the verdict, Siniša Rimac was arrested, while Suljić and Mikola failed to appear at the sentencing.
A year earlier, Igor Mikola was extradited from Bosnia and Herzegovina
Bosnia and Herzegovina
Bosnia and Herzegovina , sometimes called Bosnia-Herzegovina or simply Bosnia, is a country in Southern Europe, on the Balkan Peninsula. Bordered by Croatia to the north, west and south, Serbia to the east, and Montenegro to the southeast, Bosnia and Herzegovina is almost landlocked, except for the...
to Croatia after serving a 27-month prison sentence in the Zenica prison
Zenica prison
Zenica prison is a closed-type prison located in Zenica, Bosnia and Herzegovina. It was opened in 1886...
for attempted extortion of one Mladen Žulj, owner of a gas station in Grude
Grude
Grude is a town and municipality in western Bosnia and Herzegovina.- Geography :Grude is 49 kilometers from Mostar,19 kilometers from Imotski, and 100 km from Split....
.
Nebojša Hodak was sentenced in June 2005 to one year in prison in an unrelated case of attempted extortion.
Munib Suljić had personally surrendered to the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia
International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia
The International Tribunal for the Prosecution of Persons Responsible for Serious Violations of International Humanitarian Law Committed in the Territory of the Former Yugoslavia since 1991, more commonly referred to as the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia or ICTY, is a...
in The Hague
The Hague
The Hague is the capital city of the province of South Holland in the Netherlands. With a population of 500,000 inhabitants , it is the third largest city of the Netherlands, after Amsterdam and Rotterdam...
in June 2006. He was extradited to Croatia to serve his 12-year prison sentence, but died in a prison hospital in Svetošimunska street in Zagreb on 25 August 2006.
Compensation to surviving family members
The surviving brother Dušan Zec and little sister Gordana Zec sued the Republic of Croatia through the Croatian attorneys Ante Nobilo and Mara Mihočević. Near the end of the court case in the spring of 2004 the Ivo SanaderIvo Sanader
Ivo Sanader |Split]]) is a Croatian politician who served as the Prime Minister of Croatia from 2003 to 2009.Sanader obtained his education in comparative literature in Austria, where he also later worked in the 1980s. He worked as a journalist, in marketing, publishing and also as a private...
government agreed to a settlement and compensation of 1,500,000 Croatian kuna
Croatian kuna
The kuna is the currency of Croatia since 1994 . It is subdivided into 100 lipa. The kuna is issued by the Croatian National Bank and the coins are minted by the Croatian Monetary Institute....
.
There are initiatives to call a street in Zagreb after Aleksandra Zec, as prominent individuals such as the writer Zoran Ferić
Zoran Ferić
Zoran Ferić is a Croatian writer and columnist who resides in Zagreb. He has attended the Ivan Goran Kovačić Elementary School in the city's wealthy neighborhood of Šalata and graduated in croatistics at the Faculty of Philosophy at the University of Zagreb. He has written three novels and two...
seek to raise a monument to her.