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Former Serbian minister among 13 charged over fatal train station accident / Photo: © AFP
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Former Serbian minister among 13 charged over fatal train station accident
Serbian prosecutors on Monday charged 13 people, including a former transport minister, over the fatal collapse of a train station roof in the city of Novi Sad last month that killed 15 people.
The fatal accident at the northern city's station occurred on November 1, following extensive renovation work at the facility.
Fourteen people, aged six to 74, were killed at the scene and a 15th victim died in hospital weeks later.
Public outrage over the tragedy has sparked regular nationwide protests, with many blaming the deaths on corruption and inadequate oversight of construction projects.
"The indictment was submitted to the Higher Court in Novi Sad, accompanied by the complete documentation collected during the pre-investigation and investigation process, as well as all other evidence," the prosecutor's office in the northern city said in a statement.
Former Serbian transport minister Goran Vesic, who resigned over the disaster, was among those charged.
The prosecutors requested that the 10 people currently in custody over the incident remain there and that three people who had been released pending the investigation -- including Vesic and the former director of railway infrastructure, Jelena Tanaskovic -- be taken into custody.
Serbia's Prime Minister Milos Vucevic said the filing of the indictments less than two months after the accident was "proof that no one obstructed the case".
"In a very short period, this was accomplished... which confirms that absolutely no one obstructed the case," Vucevic said in a statement to local media.
"It will be a challenging court process, but this is proof that no one intends to hide, cover up or obstruct anything," he said.
The latest major protest over the disaster gathered tens of thousands of people in Belgrade on December 22.
Protesters are demanding that the authorities take responsibility for the roof collapse, the resignation of the prime minister and the prosecution of those found responsible.
Students have also been holding near-daily demonstrations, shutting down the operations of most universities in Serbia for a month and calling for a transparent investigation and accountability.
K. Berger--BTZ
