Marko Franciskovic, his wife Lana Ujdenica and Natko Kovacevic pleaded not guilty to public incitement to terrorism at the Zagreb County Court on Tuesday.

Franciskovic’s indictment, which he called meaningless before the court, charges him with two criminal offences of public incitement to terrorism, and his wife Lana and Natko Kovacevic with one each.

All three are suspected of having acted with the aim of “seriously disrupting the fundamental constitutional, political, economic and social structures, dissatisfied with the work of state authorities”.

Franciskovic is accused of taking part in undeclared public protests in several cities from 13 November to 1 December 2021, against the decisions of the national crisis team established to combat the Covid-19 pandemic.

According to the prosecutor’s office, he recorded and published his speeches on social networks, calling for mobilisation and attacks on members of the ruling structures, occupation of public buildings and other violent methods for the removal of the democratically elected government.

Franciskovic and his wife are also accused of having acted together and by prior agreement in Zagreb and Zadar from 16 to 22 December with the aim of seriously disrupting basic constitutional, political, economic and social structures.

Kovacevic is accused of participating in an unannounced public gathering with Franciskovic on 28 November 2021, from which they called on citizens to mobilise and attack members of the state leadership, occupy public buildings and use other violent methods to topple the government.

Franciskovic was detained for the first time in December 2021, and was released in November last year. However, on 22 December 2022, his lawyer Zvonimir Hodak announced that he must go to the investigative prison again by the decision of the High Criminal Court, which accepted the appeal of the state attorney’s office.

He was released pending trial at the end of February this year.