Šapić: ‘I never touched the councillor’ — apologises to the SNS and Vučić, refuses to resign

At an emergency press conference following last night’s incident in Novi Beograd, Belgrade mayor Aleksandar Šapić denied hitting “Kreni-Promeni” movement councillor Tanja Mićić, as Danas reports.

“Odbornicu Tanju Mićić nisam ni takao” — “I never touched councillor Tanja Mićić,” Šapić told journalists.

He condemned every form of violence against women, saying it goes against his principles, and gave his version of last evening’s events.

According to the mayor, while out for a walk he ran into Mićić and her husband, whom he accused of distributing flyers against him. Šapić said he asked the councillor why she came to his home, after which, he said, a verbal attack on him began. “My biggest mistake was not leaving,” he admitted.

Then, Šapić said, a physical attack on him began and he defended himself. “Dotičnu nisam ni takao, osim što sam je sklonio” — “I never touched her, I only moved her aside,” he said.

The mayor said that after about half an hour he returned to the scene, where he found the same people in the same place, together with the police patrol, and stressed he cooperated fully with the authorities. He claimed the councillor and her husband did not show up at the police station, while he himself was held for six hours.

“Ja se izvinjavam SNS-u i Aleksandru Vučiću zbog svega, ali ću insistirati da se utvrdi puna istina” — “I apologise to the SNS and Aleksandar Vučić for everything, but I will insist that the full truth be established,” Šapić said.

He added he is sorry if the councillor was injured, but does not know how, and described the case as a political trap prepared against him.

Asked by Insajder whether he will resign, Šapić replied: “Do sada sam trebao 20 put da podnesem ostavku, ako ćemo tako da posmatramo stvari” — “By now I should have resigned 20 times, if we look at things that way” — making clear he has no intention of stepping down.

Last night the “Kreni-Promeni” movement announced that Šapić had physically attacked councillor Tanja Mićić in Novi Beograd, breaking her nose. According to reports, medical expertise confirmed the broken nose and part of the upper jaw, while Šapić was taken to the Novi Beograd police station.