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Serbian Acquitted Of Immigration Fraud Charges

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By ELAINE SILVESTRINI, The Tampa Tribune

Published: December 4, 2007

TAMPA - Strahinja Krsmanovic has become the fifth local Serbian immigrant to walk away from federal charges alleging he lied to immigration authorities about his service in the Serbian army.

Krsmanovic was acquitted Friday of charges of possessing a green card knowing it had been acquired fraudulently. The fraud, federal prosecutors said, happened when the defendant lied and denied serving in the army.

Two other St. Petersburg Serbians have been acquitted of a similar charge, and another had charges dismissed before trial. Prosecutors dismissed charges against yet another immigrant after two trials resulted in hung juries.

Krsmanovic's attorney, Robert Pavich, said his client's story was similar to the other Serbian immigrants tried in Tampa. None of the men was accused of war crimes, although they are accused of serving in an army that perpetrated atrocities.

Before the war, Krsmanovic was a 43-year-old bookkeeper with a wife and two small children, Pavich said. He was detained and beaten by Muslim forces at the beginning of the Yugoslavian civil war, but managed to escape with the help of a friend, Pavich said.

Krsmanovic was then conscripted into the Serbian army and escaped several times, but was always captured and brought back, Pavich said. Once, he was beaten so badly he was hospitalized for 10 days. Among his injuries were damaged kidneys, and he lost all of his teeth, his attorney said.

Scott Raspopovich, president of St. Sava Serbian Church in St. Petersburg, said the community was happy and sad at the same time. They're happy because of the acquittals on the criminal charges, but upset because a prosecutor told Pavich he plans to press the cases in immigration court, potentially.

"What a waste of taxpayer money," said Raspopovich, who is also in charge of the men's defense fund. "The proof is in the pudding right now. That courthouse, my understanding is they have a 96-97 percent conviction rate and they're zero for five right now."

Raspopovich said the federal government has not proved that any of the men understood the questions they were being asked and deliberately lied when they answered. The defense has maintained that immigration authorities gave conflicting information and asked confusing questions.

One more Serbian immigrant, Jadranko Gostic, is scheduled for trial in January. His attorney, public defender Adam Allen, has told a judge his client "has expressed interest" in a proposal in which the criminal charges would be dropped and Gostic would give up his privilege to live in the United States, including his U.S. citizenship. If the case is resolved that way, Allen said, no trial will be necessary.

According to testimony during one of the trials, the names of more than 100 U.S. residents were found in documents obtained by the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia. Several others across the nation have been charged and tried for allegedly hiding their involvement in the Serbian military during the breakup of Yugoslavia during the 1990s.

Reporter Elaine Silvestrini can be reached at (813) 259-7837 or esilvestrini@tampatrib.com.

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