BOSTON — A man from Bosnia who resided in Massachusetts has been found guilty of deceitfully obtaining refugee status and U.S. citizenship by concealing his involvement as a guard supervisor at a notorious wartime prison camp known for extreme violence and brutal treatment. This camp was the site of horrific acts including killings, sexual assaults, torture, and starvation directed at Serbian prisoners three decades ago.

Kemal Mrndzic, aged 52, had been living in the coastal town of Swampscott, located north of Boston, until survivors from the Celebici prison camp identified him as a participant in the mistreatment that occurred there in 1992, according to federal authorities.

In federal court on Friday, Mrndzic was convicted of multiple charges, including a conspiracy to hide his role in the persecution of prisoners, lying to Homeland Security agents about his position at the camp, possessing a fraudulently acquired naturalization certificate, Social Security card, and using a fake passport. He faces significant penalties, including up to a decade in prison and fines reaching $250,000 for the most serious offenses, with sentencing set for January 22, 2025.

During the trial, Mrndzic was acquitted of two charges related to making false statements to Homeland Security officials. He pleaded not guilty, with his defense team arguing that the evidence presented was inadequate for a conviction on any of the counts. An inquiry for comments from his leading attorney, Brendan Kelley, was submitted on Tuesday.

The United Nations International Criminal Tribunal for the Former Yugoslavia established that guards at the Celebici camp were responsible for numerous crimes against Serbian prisoners, including murders, sexual assaults, and torture. Although Mrndzic was interrogated by authorities regarding the case in 1996, he was not prosecuted by international agencies, as stated by the U.S. attorney’s office.

Prosecutors noted that several survivors later confirmed Mrndzic’s involvement in the various abuses at the camp during the war from 1992 to 1995, which resulted in over 100,000 deaths following Yugoslavia’s disintegration. Five survivors took to the stand during the trial, recounting the dire conditions they faced at the Celebici camp in 1992 when Mrndzic was a supervising guard, describing experiences of severe beatings, near suffocation, murder, torture, sexual violence, and malnutrition.

Following the war, prosecutors detailed how Mrndzic crossed the border from Bosnia to Croatia and subsequently applied for refugee status in the U.S. He falsely stated in his refugee application and during the interview process that he had escaped after being captured and tortured by Serb forces, claiming that returning home would subject him to further persecution. He arrived in the United States as a refugee in 1999 and became a naturalized U.S. citizen a decade later, in 2009, according to prosecutors.