Reading the verdict, Judge Nikola Besenski described an incident that occurred on the morning of November 20, 1991 in a prisoner-of-war camp in Srijemska Mitrovica, Serbia, where captured Croatian soldiers and civilians were interned after the fall of Vukovar.
The judge said that the trial proved that Zdrnja had kicked prisoner Ivica Pavic although he had seen that the prisoner was wounded in both legs and could barely stand.
Zdrnja had worked as a police officer in the Vukovar Police Department until 2002 when he was arrested. He was detained in the Osijek District Prison from July 18 to August 7, 2002 when he was granted provisional release. The time he spent in detention will be counted in the prison sentence.
During the trial, which opened in June 2004, Zdrnja pleaded not guilty to the charges and said that he was not in Srijemska Mitrovica on November 20, 1991 and that he did not kick Ivica Pavic.
Zdrnja has the right to appeal.