BELGRADE, Serbia (AP) — Serbia's construction minister said Monday he was stepping down days after a concrete canopy collapsed at a railway station, killing 14 people and severely injuring three.
Minister Goran Vesic announced his resignation at a hastily called press conference as anger mounted in the Balkan country over the fatal collapse that happened just before noon on Friday in the northern city of Novi Sad. Vesic's resignation needs to be confirmed in Serbia's parliament.
“I would like to inform you that I will formally submit my resignation tomorrow morning,” said Vesic. “Once the parliament accepts it, I will no longer perform this duty.”
Surveillance camera footage showed the massive canopy on the outer wall of the station building crashing down on the people sitting below on benches or going in and out.
The train station has been renovated twice in recent years. Critics of Serbia’s populist government attributed the disaster to rampant corruption, a lack of transparency and sloppy work during the reconstruction. The renovation was part of a wider deal with Chinese construction companies.
Opposition parties have demanded the resignation of top officials, including President Aleksandar Vucic and Prime Minister Milos Vucevic, accusing them of being responsible for the deadly accident. The opposition says Vesic is just a scapegoat for the real culprits behind the tragedy.
Opposition groups plan to hold a rally on Tuesday in Novi Sad and more protests later if their demands are not met.
Vesic said that he does not accept any guilt for the deaths of the victims.
“I cannot accept guilt for the death of 14 people because neither I, nor the people who work with me, bear even a shred of responsibility for the tragedy that happened,'' he said. “I urge the authorities to determine as soon as possible who was responsible for this tragedy.”
On Sunday, angry protesters in the capital, Belgrade, left red handprints on government buildings, telling officials, ““You have blood on your hands.”
The dead included a 6-year-old girl. The three injured, who are between 18 and 24 years old, all had to have limbs amputated. They were still in serious condition on Monday without improvement, doctors said.
Populist officials have accused opposition parties of using the tragedy for political gains while pledging accountability. President Vucic on Monday promised those responsible will be punished.
“I am certain that the state authorities will determine criminal responsibility for the tragedy that happened in our country,” said Vucic.
Serbian prosecutors said they have already questioned more than 40 people — including Vesic — since opening the probe on Saturday. But critics believe that justice is unlikely to be served with the populists in firm control of the judicial system and the police.
Officials have insisted that the canopy had not been part of the renovation work, suggesting this was the reason why it collapsed but giving no explanation for why it was not renovated.
The Novi Sad railway station was originally built in 1964, while the renovated station was inaugurated by Vucic and his populist ally, Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán, over two years ago as a major stopover for a planned fast train line between Belgrade and Budapest.
People light candles for the victims of an outdoor roof collapse at a train station in Novi Sad, Serbia, Saturday, Nov. 2, 2024. (AP Photo/Darko Vojinovic)
Protesters shout slogans with red paint on thire hands symbolizing blood, demanding arrests, two days after a concrete canopy collapsed at a railway station in Novi Sad, killing 14 people and injuring three, during a protest in Belgrade, Serbia, Sunday, Nov. 3, 2024. (AP Photo/Darko Vojinovic)
Protesters demand arrests, two days after a concrete canopy collapsed at a railway station in Novi Sad, killing 14 people and injuring three, during protest in Belgrade, Serbia, Sunday, Nov. 3, 2024. (AP Photo/Darko Vojinovic)
FILE - Serbia's government minister for infrastructure and construction Goran Vesic, in Belgrade, Serbia, on March 21, 2023, Vesic said on Monday he was stepping down days after a concrete canopy collapsed at a railway station, killing 14 people and severely injuring three. (AP Photo/Darko Vojinovic, File)
PHILADELPHIA (AP) — A lawyer for Elon Musk 's political action committee told a judge in Philadelphia on Monday that so-called “winners” of his $1 million-a-day voter sweepstakes in swing states are not chosen by chance but are instead chosen to be paid “spokespeople” for the group.
GOP lawyer Chris Gober also said that the recipients Monday and Tuesday will come from Arizona and Michigan, respectively, and therefore will not affect the Pennsylvania election. He said the recipients are chosen based on their personal stories and sign a contract with the political organization, America PAC.
“The $1 million recipients are not chosen by chance," Gober said Monday. “We know exactly who will be announced as the $1 million recipient today and tomorrow.”
What the lawyer told the judge directly contradicts what Musk promised when he announced the giveaways during an appearance with Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump 's campaign in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, on Oct. 19: “We’re going to be awarding a million dollars randomly to people who have signed the petition every day from now until the election,” Musk vowed, to thunderous applause.
In testimony Monday afternoon, Krasner’s lawyer grilled a PAC official on the use of the words “chance” as well as “randomly.” Musk used both words to describe the giveaways.
Chris Young, the PAC’s treasurer, agreed he was surprised that Musk announced the prizes would be awarded “randomly.”
“It’s not the word I would have selected,” he said.
He said he knew ahead of time who the recipients would be, and that the individuals at least knew they would be called on stage – but not specifically told they would win the money.
In an Oct. 20 social media post shown in court, Musk said anyone signing the petition had “a daily chance of winning $1M!”
Gober had argued Monday that the word “randomly” is not synonymous with “chance,” a statement Krasner called “absurd.”
Musk did not attend the hearing, held on the day before the presidential election. He has committed more than $70 million to the super PAC to help Trump and other Republicans win in November.
Philadelphia District Attorney Larry Krasner took the witness stand Monday and called the sweepstakes a scam as he asked Common Pleas Court Judge Angelo Foglietta to shut it down.
“This was all a political marketing masquerading as a lottery,” Krasner testified. “That’s what it is. A grift.”
Lawyers for Musk and the PAC said they do not plan to extend the lottery beyond Tuesday. Krasner said the first three winners, starting on Oct. 19, came from Pennsylvania in the days leading up to the state's Oct. 21 voter registration deadline.
Other winners came from the battleground states of Wisconsin, Nevada, Arizona, Georgia, North Carolina and Michigan. It's not clear if anyone has yet received the money. The PAC pledged they would get it by Nov. 30, according to an exhibit shown in court.
More than 1 million people from the seven states have registered for the sweepstakes by signing a petition saying they support the right to free speech and to bear arms, the first two amendments to the U.S. Constitution. Krasner questioned how the PAC might use their data, which it will have on hand well past the election.
“They were scammed for their information,” Krasner said. “It has almost unlimited use.”
Krasner's lawyer, John Summers, said Musk is “the heartbeat of America PAC,” and the person announcing the winners and presenting the checks.
“He was the one who presented the checks, albeit large cardboard checks. We don’t really know if there are any real checks,” Summers said.
Foglietta was presiding over the case at Philadelphia City Hall after Musk and the PAC lost an effort to move it to federal court.
Krasner has said he could still consider criminal charges, as he’s tasked with protecting both lotteries and the integrity of elections. In the lawsuit, he said the defendants are “indisputably violating” Pennsylvania’s lottery laws.
Pennsylvania remains a key battleground state with 19 electoral votes and both Trump and Democratic Vice President Kamala Harris have repeatedly visited the state, including stops planned Monday in the final hours of the campaign.
Krasner — who noted that he has long driven a Tesla — said he could also seek civil damages for the Pennsylvania registrants. Musk owns Tesla along with the social media platform X, where America PAC has published posts on the sweepstakes, and the rocket ship maker SpaceX.
America PAC lawyer Chris Gober speaks with members of the media ahead of a hearing at a City Hall courtroom in Philadelphia, Monday, Nov. 4, 2024. (AP Photo/Matt Rourke)
Philadelphia District Attorney Larry Krasner arrives for a hearing at a City Hall courtroom, in Philadelphia, Monday, Nov. 4, 2024. (AP Photo/Matt Rourke)
America PAC lawyer Chris Gober speaks with members of the media ahead of a hearing at a City Hall courtroom in Philadelphia, Monday, Nov. 4, 2024. (AP Photo/Matt Rourke)
Elon Musk speaks before Republican presidential nominee former President Donald Trump at a campaign rally at Madison Square Garden, Sunday, Oct. 27, 2024, in New York. (AP Photo/Evan Vucci)
Elon Musk speaks before Republican presidential nominee former President Donald Trump at a campaign rally at Madison Square Garden, Sunday, Oct. 27, 2024, in New York. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon)
