The parents of a 13-year-old boy who killed nine children and a janitor at an elementary school in Belgrade last year have been sentenced. The child’s father was imprisoned for more than 14 years and his mother for three years.
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The court in Belgrade, Serbia, issued a statement saying that it found the parents of a teenager who killed nine children and a janitor of an elementary school in 2023 guilty.
The statement says that the teenager’s father, Vladimir Kechmanovich, was sentenced to 14 years and 6 months in prison for the crime of “creating a serious threat to public safety and neglecting and harming a minor.” But his mother was sentenced to three years in prison.
Residents lay flowers after the tragic shooting at an elementary school in Belgrade May 5, 2023 PAP/EPA
As reported by Reuters, according to Serbian laws, this boy, who was 13 years old at the time of the shooting, cannot be prosecuted due to his age. Now he is kept in a juvenile psychiatric hospital.
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“May 3. Awakening” mural in memory of school shooting victims on Belgrade StreetPAP/EPA
“His plan was like something out of a computer game or a horror movie.”
The 13-year-old attacker, who obtained a gun at his father’s house, planned the attack for a month, including a list of children he wanted to kill. “His plan was like something out of a computer game or a horror movie, it was detailed and precise, everything was marked with numbers, including the children he wanted to kill,” police said.
Residents of Belgrade remember the victims of the school shooting Photo of May 3, 2024 PAP/EPA
The boy carried out the attack on May 3, 2023. That day – immediately after entering the school, he opened fire. After shooting the janitor, school staff and children gathered around the entrance of the building, he entered his classroom, where he shot the teacher and his classmates.
“He then went to the school yard and called the police and identified himself as Kosta Kecmanovic and said he had shot more people,” police said after the shooting.
Flowers and candles at a vigil at a school in BelgradePhoto: May 3, 2023PAP/EPA
Serbia is one of the European countries with the most legal firearms per capita. There are many weapons in the hands of civilians, often dating back to the Balkan wars of the 1990s.
Main photo source: PAP/EPA
