Bytyqi brothers, Long Islanders killed in Serbia in 1999, still deserve justice, Hampton Bays family says

Three Albanian American brothers from Hampton Bays went missing 24 years ago after accidentally crossing from Kosovo into Serbian territory weeks after the end of the war.

Their bodies were found two years later in a mass grave. 

On the eve of the anniversary of their murders, the family of Agron, Mehmet and Ylli Bytyqi are renewing their call to bring their loved ones' killers finally to justice.

"The Serbian government is responsible for the murders of my brothers," said Ilir Bytyqi, a fourth brother, on Friday during a news conference at the family's Hampton Bays home with Rep. Nick LaLota (R-Amityville). "Justice is long overdue. Our family will not rest until everyone responsible for my brothers' murder is successfully prosecuted."

The freshman congressman has introduced a nonbinding resolution condemning the executions of the Bytyqi brothers and demanding that their killers be prosecuted. Similar legislation has passed in previous congressional sessions.

"These young men, citizens of the United States, were ruthlessly executed, and justice has remained elusive for their grieving family," LaLota said. " … By passing this bill, we send a resounding message that the United States stands firmly against human rights violations and will tirelessly advocate for justice for our American citizens."

The three Bytyqi brothers, who were born in Chicago to ethnic Albanian parents and later moved to Long Island, joined some 400 other U.S. citizens in April 1999 to take up arms against Serbian forces who were killing ethnic Albanians living in Kosovo.

On June 23, 1999, a few weeks after the official end of the war, the brothers mistakenly crossed from Kosovo into Serbian territory while escorting an ethnic Romani family to Kosovo’s border with Serbia. They were captured and jailed, according to media and government reports.

A judge ordered their release on July 8, 1999, but instead of being freed, the brothers were taken to a facility commanded by Goran Radosavljević, a former general in the Serbian army, and executed.

The bodies of Ylli, 25, Agron, 23, and Mehmet, 21, were dumped into a mass grave of ethnic Albanians in the Yugoslav National Forest near the Serbian town of Petrovo Selo and discovered two years later, according to the reports. A Radio Free Europe report at the time indicated that the brothers' hands were tied with wire and their heads covered with black hoods. 

Former New York Reps. Lee Zeldin, LaLota's predecessor in the First District, and Elliot Engel held hearings on the Serbian government’s role in the ethnic violence, which included the rapes of about 20,000 people and the deaths of more than 13,000 people. They pressured Serbian President Aleksandar Vučić to prosecute Radosavljević for the Long Islanders' murders.

Although the U.S. State Department declined to comment on LaLota's resolution, agency spokesman Matt Miller tweeted Friday that the Biden administration called on "Serbia to fully investigate this case and hold accountable those who committed and covered up this brutal act. We will continue that call until justice is served.

In December 2018, the State Department barred Radosavljević, who is believed to have given the order to kill the brothers, from entry into the U.S. “due to his involvement in gross violations of human rights.” Radosavljević is believed to live in Serbia, working as director of a security consulting firm in Belgrade, and is a prominent member of the country's governing Progressive Party.

No one has ever been charged or convicted in connection with the murders, which have been highlighted by human rights groups as a "war crime."

"Twenty four years have gone by and the Serbian government has held no one responsible for the deaths of my brothers," Ilir Bytyqi said. "Justice delayed is justice denied."

By Robert Brodsky

robert.brodsky@newsday.com@BrodskyRobert

Robert Brodsky is a breaking news reporter who has worked at Newsday since 2011. He is a Queens College and American University alum.