Article May Have Led to Serb’s Slaying
A slain Kosovo Serb U.N. worker had been accused of war crimes in an ethnic Albanian newspaper shortly before his death.
The article brought strong condemnation Wednesday from Kosovo’s international administration, which has frequently warned local newspapers that publishing the names of alleged war criminals could encourage people to take the law into their own hands.
The body of Petar Topoljski, 25, who was apparently stabbed to death, was found near Pristina, the provincial capital, earlier this week and identified Tuesday, police said. He had disappeared during a work errand about a week before.
A local daily, Dita, had published an article late last month accusing Topoljski and a relative of having been paramilitaries during the Serbs’ campaign of terror against Kosovo’s ethnic Albanian majority.
The article included details about Topoljski’s work and movements.
“Here, when you print something like this, you’re signing the death warrant,” said one international official in Pristina.
The U.N. Mission in Kosovo, which employed Topoljski as a language assistant in Pristina, said it had no evidence to link the dead man with any crimes.
“We . . . have spoken out strongly against newspapers publicly accusing anyone of war crimes,” a U.N. spokeswoman said.
Start your day right
Sign up for Essential California for news, features and recommendations from the L.A. Times and beyond in your inbox six days a week.
You may occasionally receive promotional content from the Los Angeles Times.
