UNMIK Police Briefing Notes
13 AUGUST 2002

KIDNAPPING VICTIM RESCUED

On the 11th August, at 5:30 pm, police from Vucitrn Police Station were called to the village of Studime in response to a kidnapping.
Five men had forcibly abducted another 65 year old male from the village.
The police investigation identified a number of possible suspects and suggested a location where the victim may be being held.
A police team entered the home, located in Mitrovice, and recovered the kidnap victim, who was unharmed. Four persons are in custody and we are seeking one additional suspect.

ARMED GANG ROBS LOCAL BUSINESS

An example of a successful Kosovo business is the Peje Brewery. On the 12th August Police received a report that there had been a robbery at the beer factory.
In the early hours of the morning, at about 3;00 am, an armed gang of six men wearing masks attacked the security guards on duty, threatening them with a gun.
The guards were overpowered, beaten and tied up. The gang then broke into the cashiers office and stole a large amount of cash.
The two guards have been treated at hospital and released.
It is especially sad that the target of these criminals was a successful local business giving employment to many people and helping to build the economic base that Kosovas future needs.

ARRESTS IN 1998 MURDER

In February, 1998, A K Albanian male resident of the Peje region was shot to death. The crime was not reported to the Police until 2002, when the Peje Regional Investigation Unit began an enquiry.
Two suspects were identified in this case, leading to arrest warrants being issued.
On the 5th August Police executed both warrants early in the morning. One suspect was arrested at his home in Pristina while the second was arrested at his home in Klina. Both men are K Albanians.
Following the arrest a search was made, resulting in items being seized of evidential value.
Both men were detained at Peje Detention Centre.
VEHICLE CHECK RESULTS IN ATTEMPT MURDER ARREST

On the 8th August Lipjan Police were conducting a regular checkpoint on a road in Talinovc village. A car approached the checkpoint travelling at a very high rate of speed.
The officers signalled the vehicle to stop but it refused to slow and drove directly at the police to run them down. With the car only metres away from him, one officer fired a shot at the driver as he jumped aside. The driver lost control of his car as he sped away. The officers gave chase and arrested the driver, who is wanted as a suspect in two cases of attempted murder.

On August 10th, two police officers were patrolling on Airport Boulevard, near the High School. They heard a female screaming from a wooded area off the highway. The officers stopped and started to search the woods. As they did so they saw a distressed female running towards them. At the same time a red car drove off on a back road out of the forest.
The police placed the woman in their car and gave chase after the car. The driver refused to stop until Police forced him to do so. The 30 year old driver was arrested for attempt rape of the 21 year old female.

We continue to receive calls every day on our private Dosja E Krimit telephone line from people across Kosovo giving us information on crime and criminals.
I can confirm that we have received new information on a number of current investigations and we want to thank those who have called and remind you that this telephone line is now permanent.

The information in this report is accurate to the extent of the information known at the time of it's writing. However, further investigations may result in changes to what previously have been reported.

For more information contact the Office of Press and Public Information, UNMIK Police MHQ
Phone 504-604-5071, 3rd floor, office 72