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GREEN | EVANS-SCHROEDER, PLLC

130 W. Cushing Street

Tucson, AZ 85718

(520) 882-8852

Fax (520) 882-8843

Email: matt@arizonaimmigration.net

Matthew H. Green

Arizona Bar No. 020827

Attorney for Defendant

UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT

DISTRICT OF ARIZONA

UNITED STATES OF AMERICA,

Plaintiff,

vs.

SINISA DJURDJIC,

Defendant.

 CR17-01658-JGZ(DTF)

 DEFENDANT’S STATUS 

REPORT

 STC: Jan. 29, 2020, 1:30 p.m.

 

 

 (HONORABLE JENNIFER G. ZIPPS )

Defendant Sinisa Djurdjic (“Mr. Djurdjic”), by and through undersigned counsel, 

submits the instant status report pursuant to the Court’s order dated December 18, 2019. 

Defense counsel respectfully incorporate by reference the information contained in 

Defendant’s December 11, 2020 Status Report. 

At the time of the December 16, 2019 Status Conference, undersigned counsel 

advised the Court that he had been in contact with the Court of Bosnia and Herzegovina

(“Bosnian Court”), and was working with International Counterintelligence Services, an 

international investigation firm previously authorized for use by Defendant in this Case 

(ICS), with the hope that ICS could provide an investigator to retrieve the seven DVDs 

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of testimony after payment was made for that material. During that conversation, the 

Government advised that it had also requested either the same testimony, or similar 

testimony, months earlier but had not received the requested recordings. Defense 

counsel also explained that, once the defense obtained the recorded testimony from the 

Bosnian Court, it would need to be translated and transcribed. 

Around this time, the Government advised that the qualifications of a SerboCroatian translator used by the defense in the Mitrovic case in the Northern District of 

Georgia had been challenged by the prosecution in that case, and the parties discussed 

whether it may be possible for the Government to obtain the seven DVDs of testimony 

from the Bosnian Court, and have it translated and transcribed. The Government was 

uncertain as to whether that would be possible but the parties agreed to explore the 

option. 

Defense counsel also advised this Court that they expected they would need to 

engage a law firm in Bosnia and Herzegovina to provide defense counsel with clarity as 

to what, if any, authorization they need to perform investigative work in that country, 

and potentially to petition the government of Bosnia and Herzegovina for such 

permission on their behalf.

1

 Undersigned counsel emphasized the importance of being 

able to properly answer this question as soon as possible since it would necessarily

inform the scope and duration of much of what lies ahead. 

 

1 Undersigned counsel explained that the defense was “previously operating under the assumption that 

such authorization would only be required if they sought to take sworn depositions of witnesses in 

Bosnia and Herzegovina. However, after speaking with Mr. Dayan recently, undersigned counsel has 

reason to believe that such authorization, potentially through letters rogatory, will be required for any 

work defense counsel perform. It is also the understanding of undersigned counsel that it will likely 

require the assistance of a qualified law firm in Bosnia and Herzegovina to effectively accomplish this”

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A. Progress on Acquisition of the Seven DVDs of Testimony from the Bosnian 

Court

On December 17, 2019, undersigned counsel forwarded his email correspondence 

with the Bosnian Court to ASUA Erica Seger. On December 18, 2019, Ms. Seger 

acknowledged receipt of the email correspondence and advised that she would let the 

defense know if she heard anything. On January 7, 2020, undersigned counsel contacted

Ms. Seger to inquire as to whether it appeared that the Government would be able to 

acquire the recorded testimony, and have it transcribed and translated. She responded 

that it was unlikely that the Government would be able to do so. 

Undersigned counsel also attempted, again, to resuscitate the failing relationship 

with ICS, after a month of silence. On January 8, 2020, undersigned counsel spoke with 

Randy Wahl, Executive Vice President of ICS, who said he was going into a meeting 

and would call back within a few hours. He never did. Later that night, undersigned 

counsel sent Mr. Wahl an email asking him to call the next day. He never did. On 

January 13, 2020, undersigned counsel sent another email to Mr. Wahl, advising him to 

cease any work on the case and to provide a final invoice within 30 days.

On January 15, 2020, undersigned counsel sent an email to the Bosnian Court, 

asking (a) whether there was an option to make payment over the phone or internet via 

credit card, (b) whether there was an option to pay an additional cost to have the Bosnian 

Court mail the DVDs to defense counsel in the U.S., and (c) whether the Bosnian Court 

could provide defense counsel with an estimate of how many hours of testimony are 

contained on the seven DVDs. On January 16, 2020, a representative from the Bosnian 

Court responded and advised only that payment must be made via wire transfer through 

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one of three foreign banks. 

B. Progress on Determination of Whether Authorization from the Bosnian 

Government is Required for Defense Counsel to Conduct Interviews in 

Bosnia and Herzegovina

On January 7, 2020, undersigned counsel attempted to identify appropriate 

attorneys located in Sarajevo for the purpose of obtaining clarity as to whether letters 

rogatory are required for the defense to conduct pretrial investigation in Bosnia and 

Herzegovina. Undersigned counsel sent email correspondence on January 7, 2020 to 

three attorneys in Sarajevo. Two responded but did not appear to have the relevant 

experience. Undersigned counsel also corresponded or spoke to a very experienced 

former Army Judge Advocate General attorney, a very experienced international white 

collar crime defense attorney, and a very experienced Department of State official for 

guidance and recommendations.

On January 9, 2020, undersigned counsel spoke with a representative of the 

Consulate General for Bosnia and Herzegovina in Chicago. He understood the issue, 

and advised that it would be necessary to write a formal letter, on the letterhead of 

undersigned counsel, explaining the situation, and articulating the specific question that 

needed to be answered. The official assured undersigned counsel that, upon receipt of 

the letter, it would be forwarded to the proper authorities in Sarejevo and an answer 

would be provided as soon as possible.

On January 15, 2020, undersigned counsel completed his letter and mailed it to 

the Consulate General of Bosnia and Herzegovina in Chicago.

C. Progress on Engaging a Local Serbo-Croatian Interpreter/Translator

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On January 13, 2020, undersigned counsel had a very productive telephone 

conversation with CJA Case Managing Attorney Jennifer Naegele. During the 

conversation, it became apparent that it would be somewhat challenging to determine an 

appropriate rate for translation and transcription of the foreign witness testimony. After 

the conversation concluded, Ms. Naegele sent undersigned counsel an email with Ninth 

Circuit presumptive rates for document translation, document transcription, and 

interpretation. 

On January 15, 2020, undersigned counsel sent another email message to Ms. 

Naegele. In fact, he forwarded the email he had originally received from Dr. Prayag 

Narayan Misra, owner of PNM-Interpreting in Phoenix, Arizona. PNM-Interpreting is 

the “local” Serbo-Croatian interpretation/translation vendor that defense counsel 

referenced in the December 11, 2020 Status Report. Undersigned counsel explained that 

the proposal that Dr. Misra provided differs in some important ways in both scope of 

services and terms of compensation from what the standard CJA rates provide. For that 

reason, undersigned counsel asked Ms. Naegele for guidance on how to proceed. 

D. Additional Developments

1. Locating a New International Investigator

Mr. McGuire is taking the lead on attempting to locate a new international 

investigation firm. He is attempting to collaborate with the Federal Public Defender’s 

Office for this purpose, and he will be able to provide more information at the time of 

the January 20, 2020 Status Conference.

2. Locating an Eyewitness Identification/Memory Expert Witness

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Defense counsel believe that it will be necessary to ask the Court to authorize 

funds to engage the services of a mistaken identity/memory expert, since both of these 

issues figure prominently in the defense’s theory of the defense. Last summer,

undersigned counsel briefly spoke with an expert but her hourly rate was extremely high. 

Mr. McGuire is taking the lead on this project and, again, is attempting to leverage the 

resources of the Federal Public Defender’s Office. 

3. Pretrial Motions Practice

Although defense counsel anticipates that there will be several pretrial motions 

that will be filed, and will require an evidentiary hearing, only a limited number of those 

motions can be prepared prior to concluding witness interviews. However, undersigned 

counsel has recently assigned research and writing assignments to Vickie Bletso, the 

research and writing attorney authorized by this Court for that purpose.

4. Additional Disclosure

On January 15, 2020, the Government disclosed 374 additional pages of 

documents. The entire set of documents is written completely in Serbo-Croatian. Ms. 

Seger advised that she is attempting to determine which of those documents the 

Government will have translated.

E. Priority of Tasks to Accomplish in the Next Sixty Days

The priority in the next sixty days will be as follows:

1. To obtain clarity from the government of Bosnia and Herzegovina as to what, 

if any, prior authorization is required for defense counsel to conduct witness 

interviews there, and to take the appropriate next steps.

2. To engage a new, reliable international investigation firm so that, first and 

foremost, the seven DVDs of testimony can be acquired from the Court of 

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Bosnia and Herzegovina. The international investigation firm will also be 

essential to assist the defense with locating potential witnesses who must be 

interviewed in Bosnia prior to defense counsel’s arrival in Bosnia and 

Herzegovina.

3. To engage the services of PNM-Interpreting so that defense counsel can begin 

conducting telephonic or video-telephonic interviews with potentially 

exculpatory witnesses in Bosnia and Herzegovina.

4. Once the seven DVDs of foreign testimony is received, to engage the services 

of PNM-Interpreting for the purpose of translating and transcribing that 

testimony (and potentially the documents recently disclosed by the 

Government that the prosecution does not translate and transcribe). 

5. To engage a mistaken identity/memory expert witness as a consulting expert 

witness, and potentially as a testifying expert witness.

6. To engage Ken Daogstino as a local investigator who will assist the defense 

both domestically and internationally with witness interviews. Undersigned 

counsel expects to submit an authorization request for Mr. Dagostino’s 

services prior to the January 29, 2020 status conference.

RESPECTFULLY SUBMITTED this 22nd day of January, 2020

GREEN | EVANS-SCHROEDER, PLLC

By: s/ Matthew H. Green

 Matthew H. Green

 Attorney for Defendant

Electronic copy to:

Matthew McGuire

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