In June 2004, Babić was sentenced to 13 years in prison after the court rejected the prosecutors' recommendation for an 11-year sentence. The court found him more responsible than the prosecutor characterized him as, but also gave Babić credit for voluntarily surrendering and pleading guilty. The court found that while "Babić was not the prime mover, ... Babić chose to remain in power and provided significant support for the persecutions." Babić was sent to a secret location in Great Britain to serve his sentence, which was an unprecedented move by the court. This led to speculations that Babić had been given a privileged treatment in exchange for his testimony against other defendants. The official justification given for not disclosing his location was concern for his safety from people against whom he testified.