Naturalized Jacksonville man sentenced for lying about role in Bosnian Conflict

Jacksonville, FL — A Bosnian man living in Jacksonville is getting his US citizenship revoked for lying to immigration officials about his role in the Bosnian Conflict in the 1990s.

56-year-old Slobo Maric pleaded guilty in July 2016 to unlawful procurement of naturalization. The sentence given to him today includes a loss of citizenship as well as 18 months in prison.

Prosecutors say Maric didn’t disclose during his naturalization process that he used to be in the Bosnian Army and that he committed crimes in Bosnia and Herzegovina during the Conflict. The plea agreement says Maric served as second in command to the warden at a Bosnian detention facility for soldiers, where he would choose detainees for abuse and participate in the abuse himself. Maric was charged by the Bosnian government, and- while he was in the US- he was convicted for war crimes.

The plea agreement says Maric knew about the court proceedings in Bosnia, but never disclosed them. He also lied about his conduct on his citizenship applications.

Maric became a naturalized US citizen on October 31, 2002.