The respondent is a 26-year-old man from Morocco. He was part of a transit group that consisted of 12 people, that included men from Syria and Morocco. The account from the individual details a violent interception by Serbian police officers, and subsequent pushback from Serbia to Bulgaria on the night of the 6th of August 2024 at around 1 am.

The respondent stated that the group had been resting along the Nišava river, on the outskirts of the town of Pirot, when two policemen that he recognised as Serbian police officers approached them at around 11 pm. The respondent accurately described the uniform of the Serbian police before being shown a photo, and then confirmed it was them. The rest of the group managed to run away, while the respondent stayed behind as he was sick and was caught by the police. He reported being handcuffed by the police and put in the back of what he describes as a big yellow van. While one of the policemen drove the vehicle, the other proceeded to beat him with a baton in the back of the van. The drive lasted around 10 minutes. The respondent describes being taken to a police station near the highway. 

At the police station he was beaten again by the two policemen and most of his belongings, including his bag, his shoes, and his money (40eur), were taken. His phone was smashed and his credit card was cut with scissors in front of him. The respondent reported staying at the police station for 2 hours before being driven to the Bulgarian border in what he recognized as a police car. At the border, he was told to cross.

The respondent could not remember the precise location of the pushback but he describes it as not being far from Pirot.