The Hague, Netherlands: A war criminal’s dramatic and deadly act in a courtroom left a big mystery unsolved. Slobodan Praljak, a Croatian ex-general, took his own life by drinking poison after the confirmation of his 20-year jail sentence for war crimes in 2017. The 72-year-old former commander of Bosnian Croat military forces proclaimed his innocence before ingesting potassium cyanide, collapsing in front of a global audience watching live on the court’s website.

Praljak’s death sparked investigations into how he managed to smuggle the poison into the UN courtroom. Despite efforts to uncover the source of the cyanide, Dutch prosecutors concluded that no criminal offenses were involved in his suicide. Surveillance footage, witness interviews, and searches of Praljak’s cell failed to determine how he obtained the lethal substance.

The war criminal’s handwritten farewell letter, found in his UN Detention Unit cell, revealed his long-standing decision to end his life if found guilty. In the letter addressed to his family, Praljak expressed his desire for his ashes to be scattered in the Croatian capital rather than having a grave or funeral. The investigation also noted that only a tiny amount of potassium cyanide is needed for fatal consequences, explaining how it went unnoticed prior to Praljak’s courtroom suicide.

Dutch prosecutors closed the case in late 2018, citing the difficulty in establishing when and how Praljak acquired the poison. The investigation failed to uncover any criminal activity related to the war criminal’s death. The tragic incident was a chilling end to a legal saga dating back to Praljak’s initial conviction for crimes against humanity in 2013. Despite the closure of investigations, the mystery surrounding Praljak’s final act continues to linger, leaving unanswered questions about the circumstances leading to his dramatic demise.