A judicial inquiry has raised doubts about the guilt of three men convicted more than 40 years ago for their alleged involvement in a plot to bomb targets in Sydney, Australia.
The NSW judicial inquiry, ordered in 2023, examined the convictions of Maksimilian Bebic, Mile Nekic, Vjekoslav Brajkovic, Anton Zvirotic, Ilija Kokotovic, and Joseph Kokotovic. The group, known as the 'Croatian Six', was sentenced to 15 years in prison in 1981 after a lengthy trial for an alleged conspiracy to bomb two Sydney travel agencies, a Serbian social club, the Elizabethan Theatre, and city water supply pipes.
In a 546-page report released Monday, Acting Justice Robert Hulme stated, "The inquiry concluded there is reasonable doubt as to the guilt of Joseph Kokotovic, Ilija Kokotovic and Mile Nekic." However, the report found "no reasonable doubt as to the guilt of Maksimilian Bebic, Vjekoslav Brajkovic and Anton Zvirotic."
Justice Hulme noted that neither of the Kokotovics participated in the inquiry, and Mile Nekic is deceased. "Nevertheless, there is a reasonable doubt about their guilt, and their convictions represent a longstanding injustice," he added.
The Court of Criminal Appeal will now review the findings to determine if the convictions of the three men should be overturned.
The 'Croatian Six' were members of Croatian national organizations and consistently maintained their innocence, alleging they were framed by the Yugoslav secret police with the assistance of a local informant named Vico Virkez. The inquiry's report concluded that Virkez's evidence was "deliberately false" regarding his connections with the Yugoslav consulate and its intelligence services.
Despite this, the report was satisfied that Virkez's testimony about the existence of a bomb conspiracy was genuine and not provided at the behest of individuals connected to the NSW Police or the Yugoslav government at the time. The report did, however, identify "failings in disclosure of information to the defence at trial concerning Virkez's association with the Yugoslav consulate and his loyalty to Yugoslavia."
Virkez's initial statement to police in 1979 led to raids where explosives and detonators were reportedly found in his vehicle. Virkez claimed the equipment had been stolen by Bebic, who was his roommate at the time.
The hearings, which ran from December 2023 to November 2024, also investigated claims that police fabricated evidence and obtained false confessions. All six men denied making the confessions attributed to them, and four alleged they were severely beaten while in custody.
The report indicated that several police officers "probably engaged in misconduct," including the assault of one of the men during a police interview. The original trial in 1980 and 1981 spanned 172 days and involved 111 witnesses.
The men were released from prison after serving between seven and eight years of their sentences.
