Mandić and Knežević were removed from the courtroom until the end of the evidentiary proceedings

The leaders of the Democratic Front, Andrija Mandić and Milan Knežević, were today removed from the courtroom by the decision of the judge of the High Court in Podgorica, Zoran Radović, until the end of the evidentiary proceedings against them for their participation in planning the violent seizure of the Assembly of Montenegro on the night of the 2016 parliamentary elections.
Marija Raković, advisor for public relations of the High Court, explained that Judge Radović made this decision because the accused Mandić and Knežević violated procedural discipline despite the warning.
As it was explained, they did not comply with the orders of the president of the criminal council to maintain order.
Mandić and Knežević were removed from the courtroom the day before because they ignored the warnings of Judge Radović to present their defense without asking questions to the prosecution and the court.
At the trial, with the consent of the prosecution and defense, the court read the statements of 17 witnesses.
Mandić and Knežević, together with eleven other defendants, are on trial before the Podgorica High Court for participating in the planning of a terrorist attack in 2016 as members of a criminal organization led by Eduard Šišmakov and Vladimir Popov.
After the Court of Appeal overturned the 2019 ruling after several delays, the proceedings against the group began anew on Tuesday.
All the defendants stood by their earlier testimony and denied guilt and the allegations of the indictment.
Mandić and Knežević asked the SDT to answer why they continue to persecute the leader of their coalition even after the political changes.
They expressed dissatisfaction with the current chief special prosecutor Vladimir Novović, accusing him of continuing the practice of his predecessor, Milivoj Katnić.
These defendants expressed their suspicion that the SDT acts on behalf of foreign embassies and international entities, although it is certain that a stable government cannot be formed without the DF.
We remind you that the Court of Appeals previously annulled the verdict by which 13 defendants were sentenced to a total of about 70 years in prison. The procedure was sent back to the High Court in Podgorica for a retrial before a modified court panel.
Earlier, during the sentencing, judge Suzana Mugoša stated, among other things, that Russian citizens Eduard Šišmakov and Vladimir Popov formed a criminal group in Serbia, Russia and Montenegro in 2016, a group that was supposed to commit criminal acts in order to intimidate the citizens of Montenegro. Gore, threatened the lives and bodies of citizens and seriously threatened the basic constitutional, political and social structures of Montenegro. In this case, the cooperating witness was Saša Sinđelić.
Eduard Šišmakov was sentenced to 15 years in prison, Vladimir Popov to 12, the leaders of the opposition Democratic Front Andrija Mandić and Milan Knežević to five years in prison each, and Bratislav Dikić to eight years. Predrag Bogićević and Nemanja Ristić were each sentenced to seven years in prison by the revoked verdict.
Mihajlo Čađenović was sentenced to one year and six months, Branka Milić, a citizen of Serbia who escaped from the trial to the Embassy of Serbia, was sentenced to three years in prison. Milan Dušić was sentenced to a year and a half in prison, Dragan Maksić was sentenced to a year and nine months, Srboljub Đorđević to a year and a half, and Kristina Hristić was sentenced to a suspended sentence.
The trial is scheduled to continue on October 3.
POBJEDA