Thirty-three years after surviving imprisonment in camps in Derventa, Drago Kne\u017eevi\u0107 has once again testified about the events of 1992.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
This time, he spent hours being questioned by investigators from the United States, who arrived in Bosnia and Herzegovina in mid-July to gather information as part of a possible investigation into war crimes committed in Derventa and individuals believed to now be living in the United States.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
During the interview, Kne\u017eevi\u0107 says he realized who might be the focus of the U.S. investigators’ interest, but because of the ongoing investigation, he does not want to reveal further details.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cI was his \u2018patient,\u2019\u201d Kne\u017eevi\u0107 told Radio Free Europe (RFE\/RL).<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Asked what he meant by that, he said he was referring to a man who, according to him, beat and abused him while he was imprisoned.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cHe beat me and abused me. He handed me a gun and told me to kill myself, saying, \u2018It doesn’t matter anymore, it’s over now,\u2019\u201d Kne\u017eevi\u0107 recalled.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Kne\u017eevi\u0107 says he spent the two worst months of his life in the camps at the former Yugoslav People’s Army (JNA) building in Derventa, in northern Bosnia and Herzegovina, before being held for another 15 days in Slavonski Brod.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cI reached such a psychological state that I prayed to God for death. I couldn’t endure the beatings anymore,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The visit by the U.S. investigators was organized in cooperation with the judicial authorities of Bosnia and Herzegovina.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
According to Kne\u017eevi\u0107, two inspectors from the State Investigation and Protection Agency (SIPA) delivered summonses to eight former camp detainees to give statements to the American investigators.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
He said that during the lengthy interviews, investigators reviewed statements the former detainees had previously given to the Prosecutor’s Office of Bosnia and Herzegovina and asked witnesses for additional explanations and details about potential suspects.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cThey even asked me to describe what kind of boots someone in the camp wore. They’re that thorough,\u201d Kne\u017eevi\u0107 said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
He added that the first witness was interviewed for about two and a half hours before he himself gave his statement.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cThere are six of them from America and two inspectors from SIPA,\u201d Kne\u017eevi\u0107 said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Radio Free Europe requested a comment from the U.S. Department of Justice, which neither confirmed nor denied the existence of an investigation.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The Prosecutor’s Office of Bosnia and Herzegovina confirmed to RFE\/RL that it has cooperated for years with U.S. judicial authorities on war crimes cases involving individuals who moved to the United States after the war.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cThe Prosecutor’s Office of Bosnia and Herzegovina welcomes the activities of our colleagues from the United States in handling cases related to war crimes. The Prosecutor’s Office maintains good communication and cooperation with U.S. prosecutorial and judicial institutions, particularly regarding investigations involving individuals who continued their lives in the United States after the war, their identification and prosecution, as well as extradition to the judicial authorities of Bosnia and Herzegovina,\u201d the Prosecutor’s Office said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
It added that, since these are cases handled by the U.S. judiciary, it could not provide further information.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The visit by the U.S. investigators comes as the Prosecutor’s Office of Bosnia and Herzegovina continues to handle a large number of war crimes cases.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
According to the Prosecutor’s Office’s 2025 report, at the end of the year there were 162 open cases involving known suspects, covering more than 2,000 individuals, along with hundreds of cases in which the perpetrators have yet to be identified.<\/p>\n\n\n\n