Fatal 59 minutes in Banjsko Polje

Why are these moments important in the investigation of Danka Ilić's disappearance? This was explained by Bojana Otović Pjanović, police major, on TV Pink on Sunday evening.

"We (the police) went to the scene many times with the father and mother, which is logical, and it is also logical that they were interrogated several times. We are reviewing all the facts and circumstances and we must reconstruct the events to be sure how it could happen that a child from a certain area of the space leaves that specific space," said major Otović Pjanović

How do we even know it's exactly 59 minutes?

We do not know with absolute precision.

In the first days, there was a lot of confusion and controversial information from several unrelated sources, writes Blic.

The first media reports on Tuesday afternoon stated that "Danka disappeared around 1 p.m." That time is also written in the "Amber alert" published on the "Find Me" website of the Ministry of Internal Affairs of Serbia.

On the other hand, in the "Amber alert" SMS message that arrived later that evening on the mobile phones of all citizens of Serbia, the time of disappearance is stated as 1:45 p.m. It can be concluded that the discrepancy arose most likely because the first media reports reported that "Danka disappeared around 1 p.m.", while the first call to the police in Bor about the girl's disappearance came at 1:45 p.m. - which is the official time for the police to report the disappearance, which is mentioned in the SMS "Amber alert" message.

So, when did Danka actually disappear?

The exclusive statement of Danka's uncle Stefan Dragomirović for "Blic", given on Sunday afternoon, can help us here. Dragomirović claims that his sister Ivana took the last picture of her children in Banjsko polje at exactly 1:20 p.m., which would mean that Danka disappeared a little later, around 1:25 - 1:30 p.m.

When did the first police patrol arrive in Banjsko polje?

Bojana Otović Pjanović, police major, said on Sunday evening on TV Pink that the first police patrol arrived in Banjsko polje "at 2 p.m., a little earlier, maybe a minute or two, a minute after the arrival of the father, who was not present on the scene."

Major Otović Pjanović's statement gives us another fixed point in the sequence of events: Danka's father Miloš came to the scene of the disappearance at approximately 1:58 p.m.

What was happening in Banjsko polje before the disappearance of Danka Ilić?

Until yesterday, when Danka's uncle presented new details in an interview for "Blic", the public had a relatively short description of all the events in Banjsko polje. That description was based on the first statement given to the media by Danka's mother, Ivana Ilić, about two hours after the disappearance.

Danka's mother, who is pregnant by the way, claims that she drove her son and daughter to Banjsko polje in the family's white "Ford".

"We live in Bor. I brought them (to Banjsko polje) to run around and take a walk. My parents are from here and I often stayed there as a child," Danka's mother said after her disappearance.

Stefan Dragomirović, Danka's uncle, denied in an interview with "Blic" the version according to which the girl could not escape her mother's attention so quickly because she "barely walks".

Dragomirović categorically claims that Danka knows how to walk and that before her disappearance she was running around the yard.

"My sister Ivana took the children to play in our yard, all this happened right before the disappearance," said Danka's uncle. The sky was gloomy, but the rain had not yet begun to fall. As you can see from these pictures (showing pictures of pictures taken by Danka's mother before she disappeared), it was sunny outside, only then it rained. So I don't know why they accuse my sister of taking the children in the rain outside and that they find it suspicious," Danka's uncle Stefan Dragomirović told Blic.

That the weather was still dry is also shown by one of the last photos taken by Danka's mother before her disappearance, which shows Danka and her brother. The photo was taken next to the white "Ford".

In the background of the picture, right in front of the car, the silhouette of Danka's brother can be seen. Danka is in the foreground, and both children are not wearing hoods.

Danka is dressed in what at first glance looks like a gray olive jacket with a camouflage pattern, but it is actually a flower pattern. The color and pattern of the jacket, which blends into the surrounding rural and forest landscape, could certainly play an aggravating circumstance during the field search for Danka in the hours after the disappearance.

How did the first minutes in Banjsko polje go after the disappearance of Danka Ilić?

Stefan Dragomirović claims that Danka's mother, after her daughter disappeared, did not immediately raise a general alarm because she believed that Danka was somewhere nearby and that she would find her herself.

The place of the disappearance is practically a rural estate with one building, a farm. It was surrounded by forests, low vegetation and fields, which would be soaked later that afternoon with heavy rain that made the search difficult.

There are specific circumstances, it is a family house from which the mother's family moved in 2013. Neglected, like a garbage dump, which is not a nice thing to say, but now everything is taken away - said on Sunday evening, Police Major Bojana Otović Pjanović.

Banjsko polje is a suburban settlement between Bor and Lake Bor, with a lot of residential facilities, houses and buildings. Above the settlement, the road leads to the forest, and nearby is the Brestovačka River.

"The terrain is very inaccessible. Even for us who are trained for hard physical work in the mine have difficulty moving," said Miroslav from the mine rescue company from Bor on Tuesday.