The former wife of an Italian man under investigation has given prosecutors a disturbing account of what she says he told her about allegedly travelling to Bosnia during the 1990s to take part in so-called “human safaris.” Italian prosecutors in Milan are examining claims that wealthy European visitors paid Bosnian Serb forces to shoot civilians during the four-year siege of Sarajevo, which lasted from 1992 to 1996 and resulted in an estimated 11,000 deaths. According to the woman, her former husband told her he travelled from Milan with other people who spent weekends acting as snipers and shooting Muslim civilians. She also claimed that he experienced nightmares about the people he allegedly killed. The man’s identity has not been publicly revealed, and he reportedly exercised his right to remain silent when questioned by investigators. Italian authorities have reportedly gathered significant evidence, including a photograph allegedly showing him alongside technical equipment and a silencer.

The investigation follows years of allegations that wealthy foreigners were taken to sniper positions around Sarajevo and paid different amounts depending on the civilians they allegedly wanted to target. Journalist Ezio Gavazzeni has claimed that a 1993 intelligence file identified five Italians who were allegedly observed near Sarajevo carrying hunting equipment and expensive weapons. He has also described alleged prices ranging from tens of thousands of pounds, with children and young women supposedly commanding the highest amounts. The claims have previously appeared in books, testimony and the 2022 documentary Sarajevo Safari. Milan prosecutors opened their investigation in November 2025 after Gavazzeni filed a legal complaint, while several Italian citizens have since reportedly come under scrutiny. The allegations remain under investigation, and authorities have yet to establish criminal responsibility in court.