Croatia ordered to pay 5,700 euros in damages over prison conditions for suspected drug trafficker
The European Court of Human Rights ruled that Petar Sarc's right to protection from inhumane treatment was violated due to overcrowding in Zagreb's investigative prison.
Croatia ordered to pay 5,700 euros in damages over prison conditions for suspected drug trafficker
The state of Croatia must pay 5,700 euros to Petar Sarc, who is accused in an investigation known as "La Famiglia" for smuggling 600 kilograms of cocaine. The European Court of Human Rights (ECHR) ruled that conditions in the investigative prison in Zagreb violated his right to protection from inhumane and degrading treatment.
Sarc spent most of his time in Remetinec prison with less than four square metres of personal space, according to the court's findings, and in some periods had even less than three square metres. According to ECHR case law, when a detainee has less than three square metres, there is a strong presumption of a violation of Article 3 of the Convention. Croatia failed to prove that these periods were brief or sporadic.
He was arrested on 13 July 2019. The investigative prison term was imposed due to fear of obstruction of proceedings and repetition of the crime, and lasted until 28 December 2021. The indictment was confirmed in April 2022, but the main trial only began in August 2025 and is still ongoing at the Zagreb County Court.
On the defendants' bench with him sits Aleš Sokolík, a Czech national. All co-defendants, including Michael Dokovich, who allegedly led the criminal organisation, reached a plea agreement with USKOK. Sarc and Sokolík deny guilt.
According to the indictment, the group transported cocaine from Central and South America to several European countries. Trips by private aircraft through countries including Switzerland, Italy, Germany, Serbia, Costa Rica, Uruguay and the Dominican Republic were used as cover. Dokovich, who admitted guilt in 2021 and received eleven and a half years in prison, was born as Ilmija Frljučkić in Podgorica and used multiple false identities.
Source: Večernji list
Source: Večernji list