Serbia indicts 13 for railway station roof collapse that killed 16

BELGRADE (Reuters) -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 Vesic and 12 others, including his aide and the railway company head, were indicted on public safety charges, 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."

The indictment needs to be verified by a court.

Months of protests across Serbia following the roof collapse, including university shutdowns, have rattled the rule of President Aleksandar Vucic, a former ultranationalist who converted to the cause of European Union membership in 2008.

The protesters, who blame corruption for the disaster, demand early elections that they hope will remove Vucic and his party from power after 13 years.

They accuse Vucic and his allies of ties to organised crime, violence against rivals and curbing media freedoms. Vucic denies the accusations.

(Reporting by Ivana SekularacEditing by Ros Russell)

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