Bosnian national accused of hiding prisoner abuse in citizenship bid

A federal grand jury in the District of Idaho has indicted Miran Kostic, 66, of Boise, on charges of lying while attempting to obtain U.S. citizenship, according to court documents. Kostic, a national of Bosnia and Herzegovina, faces one count of attempted naturalization fraud and one count of making material false statements to law enforcement agents.

According to court documents, Kostic held a high-level position in the so-called Autonomous Province of Western Bosnia. In that role, prosecutors allege he pistol-whipped prisoners, beat them with wooden clubs, stakes and his fists, and kicked them, causing them to lose consciousness. He also allegedly forced prisoners to beat one another and ordered other members of the group to beat prisoners.

Prosecutors say Kostic later lied about that history when he sought U.S. citizenship. According to the indictment, he repeatedly misrepresented the abuse he participated in and ordered, both in his citizenship applications and during interviews with the FBI and U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services. He also failed to disclose that he had been charged with war crimes in Bosnia and Herzegovina, among other alleged lies.

If convicted, Kostic faces up to 10 years in prison on the attempted naturalization fraud charge and up to five years on the false statements charge.

Assistant Attorney General A. Tysen Duva of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division said Kostic benefited from U.S. residency for decades while concealing the abuses he allegedly committed abroad, adding that people who commit atrocities and lie to immigration authorities to seek safe haven in the United States “will be investigated and prosecuted.” U.S. Attorney Bart M. Davis for the District of Idaho said his office is committed to working with its partners to ensure federal immigration laws are followed and properly enforced.

Acting Special Agent in Charge April Miller of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigations Seattle said citizenship “is a privilege that must be earned with honesty and integrity” and that HSI will not allow fraud to undermine the naturalization process. Assistant Director Heith Janke of the FBI’s Criminal Division said the bureau will continue working with law enforcement partners to investigate fraud and hold accountable those who violate federal law.

HSI and the FBI are investigating the case, with coordination from the Department of Homeland Security’s Human Rights Violators and War Crimes Center, U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services’ Office of Fraud Detection and National Security, and the FBI’s International Human Rights Unit. The Justice Department’s Office of International Affairs provided significant assistance in securing evidence for the prosecution. The department also credited the Ministry of Justice of Bosnia and Herzegovina and the United Nations International Residual Mechanism for Criminal Tribunals with helping further the investigation.

Trial Attorney Elizabeth Nielsen of the Criminal Division’s Human Rights and Special Prosecutions Section and Assistant U.S. Attorney Kate Horwitz for the District of Idaho are prosecuting the case. An indictment is an allegation, and Kostic is presumed innocent unless proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.