Prague Court Upholds 14-Year Sentence for Serbian Man Who Stabbed Victim in the Neck at a Bar

The Appellate Court in Prague has upheld the sentence handed down to a Serbian national surnamed Domdžoni — 14 years in prison for attempted premeditated murder. The incident took place in March last year at a bar in Prague, where the man, following a minor altercation, stabbed a young man in the neck, inflicting a wound up to seven centimeters deep.

The convicted man attempted to appeal the Prague Municipal Court's May ruling, claiming the facts of the case had not been fully established and describing the attack as "defensive." However, the presiding judge of the appellate panel, Petr Smrž, stated that 95% of the appeal's arguments were identical to those already presented by the defense during the original trial, and that the lower court's conclusions were logical and well-founded. The judge also noted that the factual circumstances established by the lower court were deemed accurate. During the hearing, Domdžoni shouted that he considered the ruling absurd and disagreed with it, to which the judge replied that the court, in turn, disagreed with both the defendant and his behavior.

How the attack unfolded

According to the prosecution, the conflict began with a minor scuffle at the bar, after which Domdžoni pushed the victim outside. The young man then left the venue along with three friends. As the group was walking away, the defendant, according to investigators, armed himself with a knife and chased after them.

A few minutes later, he caught up with the group and, shouting "I'll kill you, ...!", attacked the victim — first attempting to kick him, then plunging the knife into his neck to a depth of up to seven centimeters. Only a stroke of luck saved the man's life: he did not bleed out thanks to a friend who kept pressing the wound with his clothing the entire time. The victim was rushed to hospital by taxi, where surgeons managed to save his life.

The verdict and aggravating circumstances

For attempted premeditated murder, the defendant faced up to 20 years in prison, meaning the 14-year sentence falls in the lower half of the possible range. The court found both the legal classification of the crime and the severity of the sentence to be correct.

According to the judge, the only mitigating factor was that the defendant had compensated both the victim and the insurance company for non-material damages. Among the aggravating factors was Domdžoni's prior conviction in Austria for drug-related crimes. He is currently also on trial at the Prague Municipal Court for illegal production and trafficking of narcotic and psychotropic substances.

Last year, he was already sentenced in absentia to 12 years in prison in that case, but he requested a retrial with his personal participation. The next hearing in that case is scheduled for mid-September. The court noted that, despite the presumption of innocence, it cannot be said that Domdžoni is a law-abiding person who respects the legal order of the country in which he resides.

Around Prague, based on reporting by novinky.cz