Podgorica, (MINA) - The Appellate Court has rejected the appeal of the Special State Prosecutor’s Office (SDT) and upheld the ruling of the Podgorica High Court, acquitting Speaker of the Parliament Andrija Mandic, leader of the Democratic People’s Party Milan Knezevic and the others accused in the “Coup d’etat” case.

In addition to Mandic and Knezevic, Eduard Shishmakov, Vladimir Popov Nikolayevich, Bratislav Dikic, Predrag Bogicevic, Nemanja Ristic, Srboljub Djordjevic, Kristina Hristic, Branka Milic, Milan Dusic, Dragan Maksic, Mihailo Cadjenovic were also acquitted by the High Court’s ruling.

The Court recalled that Shishmakov and Popov were acquitted of the criminal offense of creating a criminal organization and attempted terrorism, while Dikic, Bogicevic, Ristic, Djordjevic, Hristic, Milic, Dusic, Maksic, Cadjenovic, Mandic and Knezevic of the criminal offense of forming a criminal organization.

The Appellate Court explains that the defendants were acquitted as it was not proven during the proceedings that they had committed the criminal acts for which they were charged.

The SDT had previously appealled against the first-instance verdict due to, as claimed, an essential violation of the criminal procedure and an incorrectly established factual situation.

According to the Appellate Court, there were no significant violations of the criminal procedure provisions referred to in the SDT’s appeal, nor any other violations that the court, acting as a second instance body, is required to examine ex officio.

The Court, according to the press release, contrary to the SDT’s appeal claims, found that the first instance court, in a lawfully conducted procedure, had produced all the evidence relevant to clarifying the criminal-law matter in question.