JURIST - Paper Chase: Suspect in Serb PM killing claims he was forced to sign confession

[JURIST] The alleged assassin of Serbian Prime Minister Zoran Djindjic [BBC obituary; memorial website] has accused Serb police officers and other officials of forcing him to sign a statement that says he is responsible for the 2003 murder [JURIST report] of the Serbian reform leader outside a government building in Belgrade. Zvezdan Jovanovic initially acknowledged a role in the killing but later pleaded not guilty and through his lawyer told reporters that the forced confession involved threats against his family.

Ex-Serb paramilitary commander Milorad Ulemek, who served with Jovanovich during the Balkan conflicts of the 1990s, has been accused of masterminding the murder as part of a larger plan to put more power in the hands of former leader Slobodan Milosevic [JURIST news archive]. Both men and 11 others are being detained as their trials continue. AP has more.

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