A Belgrade court today sentenced the father of a teenager who shot and killed nine students and a security guard at his school in the Serbian capital in 2023 to 14.5 years in prison, and three years to the mother.

The perpetrator of the murder, a boy aged 13 at the time, entered his school on May 3, 2023 armed with a gun he had taken from his father before killing ten people. His age at the time of the events renders him not criminally responsible under Serbian law, and he testified as a witness at his parents’ trial.

“The defendant (the perpetrator’s father) Vladimir Kecsmanovic is sentenced to 14 years and six months in prison for having committed the following criminal offenses: serious harm to public safety and negligence and abuse of a minor. The defendant (the mother) Miliana Kecsmanovic is sentenced to three years in prison for negligence and abuse of a minor,” the court announced today.

The first-instance verdict was made public even though the trial, which lasted 11 months, was held behind closed doors by order of the court.

The prosecutor had asked the court to impose the maximum penalty provided by law on the father. He had asked for 12 years in prison for Vladimir Ketsmanovic for “a serious criminal offense against public security” and three years for the offense of “neglect and abuse of a minor”.

According to the civil suit, he had trained his son in the handling of weapons by regularly taking him to a shooting range. He had been remanded in custody.

For the mother of the attacker, Miliana Kecsmanovic, the prosecutor had asked for a prison sentence of two years and six months for “production and possession of weapons without a license” and three years for “neglect and abuse of a minor”.

However, he was acquitted of the criminal offense of “unlicensed production and possession of weapons”.

His mother had undergone genetic testing after her DNA was found on one of the bullets, but was released.

The tragedy had sparked anti-government protests by tens of thousands of people who took to the streets demanding the impeachment of officials and an end to the glorification of violence and mafia culture in the media.