The JNA, supported by the paramilitaries and the TO, entered Lovas unopposed on the morning of 10 October. According to court testimony of one of the paramilitaries who took part in the events, the troops moving against Lovas were told to expect 300–400 ZNG troops defending the village. Once the attacking force entered the village, the troops continued to throw grenades and shoot at houses at random for several hours. During the assault, 22 civilians were killed in their homes or back yards. In the immediate aftermath of the takeover of Lovas, Croat civilians were required to wear white armbands and their houses were marked using white sheets. The marked houses were looted and torched by the TO and paramilitaries. Authority in the village was turned over to Ljuban Devetak, a member of the "Dušan Silni" paramilitaries. He was styled as the commander of the village, but the JNA remained in overall control of the entire region. Over the following week, 23 more civilians were killed by the paramilitaries and the TO troops in improvised detention facilities. The improvised prisons were also used for torture and abuse of captives, including war rape, causing serious injuries to 18 civilians.