US embassy cable - 03ZAGREB761

C O N F I D E N T I A L ZAGREB 000761 
 
SIPDIS 
 
 
STATE FOR EUR, EUR/SCE AND S/WCI 
THE HAGUE FOR JOHNSON/KAYE/WHEATON 
 
E.O. 12958: DECL: 04/07/13 
TAGS: PGOV, PREL, HR, ICTY, War Crimes 
SUBJECT: CROATIAN POLICE ARREST INDICTED WAR CRIMINAL RAJIC 
 
REF: ZAGREB 756 
 
CLASSIFIED BY: NICHOLAS HILL, POLITICAL-ECONOMIC COUNSELOR, FOR REASONS 
 1.5 (B) AND (D). 
 
1.   (C) ON APRIL 5, A DAY AFTER THE RACAN GOVERNMENT 
DELIVERED AN ICTY INDICTMENT TO GENERAL JANKO BOBETKO THROUGH 
HIS LAWYER (REFTEL), IT TOOK INTO CUSTODY IVICA RAJIC, A 
BOSNIAN CROAT AND FORMER COMMANDER OF THE CROAT DEFENSE 
COUNCIL (HVO), WHO HAS BEEN WANTED BY THE TRIBUNAL ON WAR 
CRIMES CHARGES FOR SEVERAL YEARS.  THOMAS OSORIO, HEAD OF THE 
ICTY LIAISON OFFICE IN ZAGREB, TOLD US ON APRIL 7 THAT HIS 
OFFICE HAD BEEN HOPEFUL ABOUT THE RAJIC ARREST, BUT WAS 
SURPRISED BY THE TIMING.  PM RACAN HAD PROMISED CHIEF 
PROSECUTOR CARLA DEL PONTE BACK IN OCTOBER ON HER LAST VISIT 
TO CROATIA THAT AUTHORITIES WOULD NAB RAJIC, BUT THERE HAD 
BEEN NO SPECIFIC NEWS RECENTLY. 
 
2.   (C) ACCORDING TO OSORIO, IN CONTRAST TO OTHER INDICTED 
WAR CRIMINALS -- SUCH AS ANTE GOTOVINA AND EVEN BOBETKO -- 
RAJIC HAS NO SIZABLE FOLLOWING, OR IN OSORIO'S WORDS, "FAN 
CLUB" IN CROATIA.  AND AS A BOSNIAN CROAT, HIS ARREST IS 
VIEWED HERE AS MUCH LESS CONTROVERSIAL.  RAJIC IS A 
"PSYCHOPATH" AND REPRESENTED THE "WORST OF THE WORST," OSORIO 
SAID.  RAJIC WAS INDICTED FOR THE KILLING OF 16 CIVILIANS IN 
THE CENTRAL BIH TOWN OF STUPNI DO IN 1995.  HE HAD BEEN 
PROTECTED BY THE TUDJMAN GOVERNMENT AND OFFERED FALSE 
DOCUMENTS.  HE HAD REPORTEDLY FLED CROATIA, BUT REPORTS ABOUT 
    HIS RETURN BEGAN CIRCULATING LAST YEAR.  THE POLICE HAVE BEEN 
TRACKING HIS ACTIVITIES AND MONITORING HIS FAMILY'S 
TELEPHONES.  ACCORDING TO PRESS REPORTS, HIS LOCATION WAS 
UNCOVERED DURING THE COURSE OF THE ONGOING SEARCH FOR 
GOTOVINA. 
 
3.   (C) CHIEF OF POLICE RANKO OSTOJIC TOLD US ON APRIL 7 
THAT THE ARREST CAME AFTER AN 8-MONTH INVESTIGATION. 
ACCORDING TO OSTOJIC, FOR THE PURPOSES OF PROTECTING LAW 
ENFORCEMENT PERSONNEL, THE POLICE TOLD THE PRESS THAT RAJIC 
WAS ARRESTED IN ZAGREB.  IN TRUTH, HOWEVER, THE FUGITIVE WAS 
TAKEN INTO CUSTODY IN SPLIT.  OSTOJIC TOLD US THAT 
AUTHORITIES WANT TO "DISMANTLE" THE WHOLE INFRASTRUCTURE 
INSIDE THE GOVERNMENT THAT HAS PROTECTED SUSPECTED WAR 
CRIMINALS.  OSTOJIC NOTED THAT RAJIC'S WIFE, FOR EXAMPLE, WAS 
HIRED BY THE PREVIOUS REGIME AND CONTINUES TO WORK FOR THE 
MINISTRY OF DEFENSE IN SPLIT. 
ROSSIN 
 
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