The case of the harassment of Ljubomir Stefanović, the editor-in-chief of the YouTube channel Slavija Info, by the police and the Security Information Agency (BIA).

On the same occasion, the police searched the apartment of his sister, from which two stationary computers and two laptops were seized. Stefanović has been charged with the criminal offense of Forgery of a Document. After the appeal against the detention order was accepted (the appeal was submitted by his attorney Nikola Lakić), Stefanović was released.

In a statement given, Stefanović's lawyer emphasized that his client did not commit any criminal offense and underscored the fact that the disputed document had not been used in any proceedings. Furthermore, the attorney stated that the Second Basic Public Prosecutor's Office in Belgrade considers itself incompetent to conduct the said proceedings.

The Independent Journalists' Association of Serbia, publicly responding, pointed out that when determining police detention, as well as during the undertaking of all other legally prescribed measures, all procedures must be respected and strictly followed.

The court of NUNS stated that arbitrary searches of apartments, the determination of police detention, and the seizure of communication means — all of which Ljubomir Stefanović faced — represent a gross violation of citizens' rights, and if this practice continues, pursuing a journalistic profession will become impossible.

Stefanović had previously addressed the public with claims that he suffers pressure due to his editorial policy. In October of last year, he informed the media that he was forcibly taken, without grounds, to the premises of the BIA, where he spent four hours. During that time, according to him, he was not allowed to contact his lawyer, and his mobile phone and car keys were temporarily confiscated.

According to Stefanović, in the last five years, he has spent more than 197 hours in detentions at border crossings of the Republic of Serbia, and he has been stopped and searched nearly 90 times. Stefanović emphasized that his minor son witnessed these stops and searches. The criminal complaint that Ljubomir Stefanović filed against the director of the BIA and against 11 unidentified individuals (members of the BIA), due to the existence of grounds for suspicion that they committed the criminal offenses of Abuse of Official Position under Article 359 of the Criminal Code, Negligent Work in Office under Article 361, paragraph 1 of the Criminal Code, and Unlawful Deprivation of Liberty under Article 132, paragraph 2 of the Criminal Code — was dismissed.

The Independent Journalists' Association of Serbia and several civil sector organizations submitted a criminal complaint due to the existence of grounds for suspicion that on Stefanović's phone, during his stay at the Police Station Voždovac, a Cellebrite tool was used, which is employed for unlocking phones and retrieving data, thereby opening the possibility for the installation of the NoviSpy spyware. The allegations from the complaint are still being investigated by the prosecution.

More about the case of Ljubomir Stefanović can be found in the Monitoring of the Media Scene in the Republic of Serbia for the month of October and December 2024.

The entire Monitoring of the Media Scene in Serbia for August 2025 is available at THIS LINK.