KOLAŠIN, 20.11.2025 – Miodrag Novaković from Kolašin has been sentenced to nine months in prison for a threatening message he sent via the social network Facebook to E Television journalist Itana Kaluđerović, the Basic Court in Kolašin has ruled.
Judge Arsen Popović of the Basic Court in Kolašin delivered the verdict orally today, ordering psychiatric treatment for Novaković as well.
Novaković admitted that on 26 May this year he wrote in a comment addressed to the journalist: “Watch yourself, you’re a bullet away.”
He was convicted of the criminal offence of Endangering Safety, specifically its aggravated form, which carries harsher penalties when the victim is a journalist. Under the current Criminal Code of Montenegro, the penalty ranges from three months to five years in prison.
Basic State Prosecutor Maja Šćepanović stated in her closing argument that the proceedings proved the defendant had sent the threatening message and that the journalist had felt fear.
“In line with the state’s positive obligations regarding attacks on journalists, fear must be assessed based on the victim’s testimony. In this case, the victim’s account of fear and insecurity must be fully accepted,” Šćepanović said at the hearing.
She requested a one-year prison sentence, arguing it would serve not only as a corrective measure for the defendant but also as a general deterrent, signalling that “the state will not tolerate attacks on journalists.”
The judge noted that the parties will receive the written judgment, after which the deadlines for appeal will begin.