Russia’s help in Serbia's investigation into illegal trafficking in human organs in Kosovo will be very useful, Serbian War Crimes Prosecutor Vladimir Vukcevic said.
In January 2012 it became known that two Russian nationals were among the victims of illegal donor transplantations that were carried out in the 'Medicus' clinic in Pristina. Russia’s Kommersant daily said on Monday Russia has been conducting its own investigation into the case and already gathered some important data.
"I believe, Russia’s participation in the investigation may be very useful, because of its Security Council member status. I expect Russia to assist us in the investigation, because those cases are related,” the Serbian official told the B92 channel.
Serbia’s Tanjug agency reported on Monday that a cooperation agreement has been signed with Russia which involves exchange of information.
So far, illegal organ trafficking investigations are grouped into two major cases - the first concerns Ethnic Albanian Kosovo Liberation Army (KLA), named in a report by Council of Europe Rapporteur Dick Marty as a possible perpetrator of organ trafficking-related war crimes.
The report says that organs were taken from prisoners killed by the Kosovo Liberation Army (KLA) during the 1999 war against Serb forces.
The case is being investigated by a special working group within the framework of European Union’s EULEX mission, led by U.S. diplomat John Clint Williamson. Serbia, however, wants this case to be investigated under the UN aegis and seeks Security Council’s supervision of the probe.
Another investigation concerns the Medicus, a private clinic in Pristina that made headlines in 2008 after some of its employees were arrested on suspicion of an illegal transplantation of a kidney from a 23 year-old Turkish donor to a 70 year-old Israeli national. Some time later, more cases came into spotlight.
The donors were lured in Turkey, Kazakhstan, Moldova and Azerbaijan by promise of a 20,000-euro payment in exchange for their organs, but as a result they found themselves without both their organs and money.
Vukcevic said there is a link between the two cases.
