Kosovo Serb arrested following killing of Albanian policeman

Serbian Press Agency SRNA, Bijeljina, 03-01-2007 19:52:08

 

PRISTINA - Members of KFOR special forces, international and Kosovo police have detained Sasa Simic during a operation involving searching Serb houses in the village of Babin Most on the road from Pristina to Kosovska Mitrovica in search for the killer of policeman Agni Kosumi, said Simic's father, Vukasin.

 

The operation ended at about 6:30 p.m. today.

 

Vukasin Simic and Stojan Danic were arrested this morning but were released this afternoon from the police station in Vucitrn.

 

Vukasin Simic emphasized that his son Sasa and his family lives in Trstenik and that they were visiting for the New Year's holidays. Simic emphasized that "there were five children in the house during the arrest".

 

He also stressed that nothing had been found in his house and that his family had nothing to do with this morning's killing of Kosumi.

 

Simic said that considerable damage had been done to his home because members of international police broke into the attic during the search.

 

Serbs from Babin Most have sent a letter to Coordinating Center for Kosmet president Sanda Raskovic-Ivic, Serbian premier Vojislav Kostunica and Serbian president Boris Tadic that states that all the Serbs are out on the local road also used for travel by Albanians and asking that they request that KFOR stop the operation.

 

The letter states that none of the local residents is aware of the reason for the brutal search to which the Serb households in this village have been subjected.

 

Policeman Agni Kosumi was killed early this morning at 1:30 a.m. by a bullet fired at a civilian vehicle in motion. Also in the car were the driver and three officials of the Kosovo police.