Serbian coach Milutin ‘Micho’ Sredojevic who had been found guilty of suspected sex crime in South Africa has been acquitted by the Grahamstown High Court in Eastern Cape, South Africa.
The 52-year-old, who is the currently Uganda national team head coach, was in October last year handed a jail term of three years, which was suspended for five years, by the Gqeberha Regional Court.
Micho had been accused by South African authorities of allegedly assaulted a 39-year-old woman who was serving him coffee back in 2020.
In a statement the former Orlando Pirates coach says his appeal was successful and has been acquitted by the High Court that has now set aside the sentence.
“On the 24th August 2022 the Grahamstown High Court sat and heard my appeal on the judgement by the Regional Magistrate court of New Brighton in Port Elizabeth handed down in October 2021,” the statement reads.
[perfectpullquote align=”full” cite=”” link=”” color=”” class=”” size=””]“It is a case whose intention was to remove my untainted footprints of having been a football servant to this beautiful continent of Africa, a place I call home.[/perfectpullquote]
“I became a subject of unpleasant discussions, a reference of a man under a dirty cloud of misdemeanour and lived with a face in total shame. My name no longer was spoken of in relation to my work and first love, Football and being on field but that of a suspect and convicted person of malicious accusations.
“For the past 2 years my reputation and image were questioned and the work I had done in the field of play over the past 20 years of being in Africa became meaningless as I was now defined by an embarrassing scandal that threatened my career.
“After close scrutiny and careful considerations of all merits presented by my legal team, the High Court handed down a judgment of my acquittal. I was duly found not guilty on all charges that I was sentenced on which overturned the initial sentence and pronounced on my total innocence on all counts of charges and pronouncing success of my appeal.
He continued; “I extend my heartfelt gratitude and appreciation for every word of encouragement and support I received from Football loving people across the broader African continent, my home and friends in all parts of the world. Your unwavering love kept me going and gave me strength.
“ Your belief in me is something I will never take for granted. Here’s to a new chapter on the field and no one can take us down.”
