Serbia indicts 13 people for railway station roof collapse that killed 16

A Serbian prosecutor on Tuesday indicted 13 people, including a former minister over their role in a railway station roof collapse last year that killed 16 people and triggered months of nationwide anti-government protests.

Former construction, infrastructure and transport minister Goran Vesić and 12 others were indicted on public safety charger, the prosecutor's office in the city of Novi Sad said in a statement.

The indictment includes "putting in use the station building, even though construction work was under way and a permit (to keep the building in use) had not been issued," the statement said.

Further charges are the "failure to maintain the structure of the station building, and for criminal offences during the design and execution phase of the renovation of the Novi Sad Railway Station building."

Among indicted are also Vesić's aide and the railway company head. 

The indictment needs to be verified by a court.

The tragedy happened in the northern city of Novi Sad when a length of roofing along the entrance to the station collapsed and killed 16 people.

The incident sparked months of nationwide protests across Serbia including university shutdowns. The demonstrations rattled the rule of President Aleksandar Vucic, a former ultranationalist who converted to the cause of European Union membership in 2008.

The protesters blamed corruption for the disaster and demanded early elections that they hoped would remove Vucic and his party from power after 13 years.

They accuse him and his allies of ties to organised crime, violence against rivals and curbing media freedoms.

Vucic denies the accusations.

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