SERBIA: VICE CONSUL ARRESTED IN KOVACEVIC CASE; KOVACEVIC

UNCLAS BELGRADE 000987 DEPT FOR EUR/SCE (D. SCHROEDER, K. KOKTA),CA/OCS/ACS (O. KINDER), L/LEI (P. GUTHERIE),L/DL (C. BROWN),L/CA (G. BRANCATO),CA/OCS/PRI (E. BETANCOURT) SARAJEVO FOR LEGATT SENSITIVE SIPDIS E.O. 12958: N/A TAGS: CJAN PREL PGOV ODIP EAID SR SUBJECT: SERBIA: VICE CONSUL ARRESTED IN KOVACEVIC CASE; KOVACEVIC TESTIFIES REF: BELGRADE 770 AND PREVIOUS Summary -------------- ¶1. (SBU) Serbian authorities arrested former Vice Consul Igor Milosevic on September 2 and are investigating him for misuse of authority for issuing a travel document to former University of Binghamton basketball player Miladin Kovacevic, who is accused in New York of first-degree assault and first-degree gang assault for allegedly beating a fellow university student. In his September 18 testimony during the hearing on the charges against Milosevic, Kovacevic implicated the former Serbian Consul General in the case; in comments to the press he alleged mistreatment in the U.S. End Summary. Vice Consul Detained -------------- ¶2. (SBU) Serbian authorities detained former Vice Consul Igor Milosevic on September 2 in relation to their investigation of his role in the flight of Miladin Kovacevic from justice in New York (reftel). Milosevic faces charges of misuse of authority, as he was aware that Kovacevic had surrendered his passport to a Broome County, New York, court. Serbian government sources told us on September 6 that Milosevic may have also falsified the data on Kovacevic's temporary travel document in order to help him avoid detection when fleeing the United States. Kovacevic Testifies -------------- ¶3. (U) Serbian authorities called on Kovacevic and his parents to testify during a September 18 hearing on the charges against Milosevic. In informal comments to the press in the courthouse hallway, Kovacevic reportedly expressed his desire for the affair to be over. Local daily Vecernje Novosti quoted Kovacevic as saying "I'm not a fundamentalist or a member of Al Qaeda who is trying to spread ideology, I'm just a regular guy who wants to go back to my normal life." Politika reports that Kovacevic told reporters that he endured "torture" in the U.S. jail and was threatened with death, and claimed that Steinhauer was kept in a coma "artificially." ¶4. (U) During his testimony Kovacevic reportedly said that he was unable to remember many details due to medication he was taking at the time of his June 9 release from prison, but said he recalled being in the Serbian Consulate in New York and was certain that Milosevic had consulted with Consul General Slobodan Nenadovic before issuing the temporary travel document. Reactions to "Absurd Request" to Cancel Support for Serbian Basketball -------------- ¶5. (U) On September 15, press carried statements from Serbian pharmaceutical company Hemofarm director Miodrag Babic announcing the company was pulling its support for the Basketball Federation of Serbia (KSS) while Kovacevic plays basketball in Serbia. In his statement, Babic said that Hemofarm was complying with an "absurd request" from Senator Clinton. Other Hemofarm officials and representatives from KSS criticized the request, saying it created a political relationship between the USG and Serbian basketball. Tabloid papers and daily Politika criticized Babic for responding to the request, citing three other Serbian sponsors of KSS that did not react immediately. Headlines included "Hillary Stops Serbian Basketball" "Hillary's Hook Shot," and "Babic Listens to Serbia." Comment -------------- ¶6. (SBU) The Milosevic trial has placed Kovacevic back in the Serbian public spotlight and given him the opportunity to repeat his lies to the press. Though the nationalist Serbian media has gleefully seized on Kovacevic's statements to again try to portray him as a victim of American justice, for the most part, sensationalism of the case has diminished. End Comment. BRUSH