Following a proposal from the Higher Public Prosecutor’s Office in Sremska Mitrovica, a 48-hour detention has been ordered for two individuals who provided accommodation services in an unlicensed home for the elderly, where two people tragically died in a fire today. The detainees are suspected of committing a serious offense against public safety.

They will be questioned within the legal timeframe, after which the prosecutor’s office will decide on further proceedings in the case.

Early this morning, around 6 a.m. in Vojka, a fire broke out in a facility housing elderly and disabled individuals, resulting in the deaths of two residents. A social welfare inspection confirmed that the facility was operating illegally as an unregistered elder care home.

Provincial Secretary Predrag Vuletic stated that the residents were housed in an unlicensed, illegal facility.

“Today, at the very least, a crime has been committed here—against the people, against the residents housed in this unlicensed facility. This is entirely the responsibility of those running this association, as well as the local social welfare system. We received no reports, no anonymous tips, and no information from the Stara Pazova Center for Social Work,” Vuletic highlighted.

The Provincial Social Welfare Inspectorate found that the facility was unregistered and that authorities had no prior knowledge of its existence, according to a statement from the Ministry of Labor, Employment, Veteran, and Social Affairs.