Decision made on trial for Danka Ilić murder – Here is where the defendants will stand trial

“Today, the Higher Court in Zaječar received a decision from the Court of Appeal in Niš stating that the trial will be held in Negotin instead of Zaječar. The reason is that all judges of the Higher Court in Zaječar have already been involved in the case, while under the law, the trial must be conducted by judges who have had no prior involvement with the case,” Kurir has learned.

The Higher Court in Zaječar will forward the Court of Appeal’s decision to the Higher Court in Negotin, which has been designated to conduct the trial.

“As soon as we receive the official document, we will begin working on the case. First, a preparatory hearing will be scheduled. Based on court practice, this usually takes place in about a month. The preparatory hearing is closed to the public. At that hearing, the judge sets the date for the opening of the main trial, that is, the start of the trial. It could be two or three weeks after the preparatory hearing, but there is no fixed rule,” Kurir sources said.

The Higher Public Prosecutor’s Office in Zaječar is reportedly expected to seek jurisdiction over the case.

“We will request it, and based on previous practice, we are certain that we will be granted jurisdiction and serve as the prosecution in this trial. We have been familiar with every detail from the very beginning, unlike our colleagues in Negotin, so there is really no question about it,” a source from the prosecutor’s office told Kurir.

Indictment in the murder of Danka Ilić

As a reminder, the indictment against Srdjan Janković and Dejan Dragijević, who have been charged with the aggravated murder of two-year-old Danka Ilić, provides a detailed account of how the girl allegedly died.

According to the indictment, Srdjan Janković and Dejan Dragijević were returning from a work assignment and driving through Banjsko Polje in a white Fiat Panda, with Janković behind the wheel and Dragijević in the passenger seat, when they struck Danka Ilić, causing her to fall on the right-hand side of the vehicle.

Danka Ilić was alive when she was hit by the car

“According to the allegations, Dejan Dragijević noticed this and informed Janković. The two then agreed to remove the child’s body from the road, kill her if she was still alive, and hide the body in order to avoid being discovered. They wanted to avoid prosecution for the traffic accident,” the indictment states.

As previously reported, three responses to the indictment filed by the Higher Public Prosecutor’s Office in Zaječar against Dejan Dragijević and Srdjan Janković were submitted to the Higher Court in Negotin at the beginning of March. The two men are suspected of killing two-year-old Danka Ilić on March 26, 2024, in Banjsko Polje near Bor.

Following a supplementary investigation, the indictment charges Dejan Dragijević and Srdjan Janković with the criminal offense of aggravated murder as co-perpetrators, for which the maximum sentence is life imprisonment without the possibility of parole.