On the 15th of February, the respondent and three other boys from Afghanistan and Pakistan -aged between 14 and 19- were pushed back from Croatia to Bosnia. Only 30 minutes after the group had crossed the border in the mountains between Bosnia and Croatia near the Bosnian city of Bihac, the group was apprehended by 4 Croatian officers, there were 3 policemen and 1 policewoman.
The authorities asked them about their names and countries of origin. They also asked them if there was an English speaker in the group. According to the respondent, the officers were looking for the group leader.
‘I tell him I don’t know who is the boss but they still beat us.’
Reportedly, the authorities used their hands, feet, and batons to strike the group members. Afterwards, their clothes and blankets were allegedly burned and their money, phones, and food were taken from them. At last, they had to go into a vehicle that was described by the respondent as a police car in which they were driven for what felt to the respondent like several hours before the officers let them out of the vehicle at the Croatian-Bosnian border near Bihac.