Belgrade appeals court overturns indictment in Novi Sad canopy collapse case

The Court of Appeal in Belgrade has overturned the decision confirming the indictment issued by the Higher Prosecutor’s Office in Belgrade over the collapse of the canopy at the railway station building in Novi Sad and ordered that it be reconsidered.

As reported by the investigative portal KRIK, the indictment was filed in March last year, CE Report quotes FENA.

It charges three individuals with approving the opening of the station even though they allegedly knew that construction work on the building had not been completed, that it was not stable, and that its use could endanger people’s lives.

According to a statement published on the court’s website, the appeals filed by defense lawyers and by the defendant Slobodanka Katanić, a manager at the state-owned company “Infrastruktura Železnice Srbije,” were upheld.

The main reason for the decision, KRIK reports, is that the first-instance court which confirmed the indictment failed to determine whether the indictment had been submitted by an authorized prosecutor, the statement said, without providing further details.

Foto/ Vesna Lalić/Nova.rs