The Broome County district attorney announced Wednesday that he will assist Serbian prosecutors in their trial of Miladin Kovacevic and the consuls who helped him flee.

District Attorney Gerald Mollen said his decision is the result of longstanding discussions with Bryan Steinhauer’s family and the Serbian government, along with consultations with representatives of the U.S. Department of State and Department of Justice. He will transfer evidence that links Kovacevic to the coma-inducing beating of Steinhauer over to the prosecutors in the case.

Steinhauer and his family completely agree and support the decision. They thank Mollen and his staff, “who conducted the investigation of this matter with care and professionalism,” said the family’s lawyer, Irwin Rochman.

The Serbian government gave over $900,000 to the Steinhauer family on March 12 in recognition that its government officials aided Kovacevic’s escape and to cover the “tremendous financial burden for Bryan’s medical care, now and in the future.” Mollen had said he’d be willing to meet with Serbian prosecutors to discuss their request to hand over evidence only if the money was given to the family in the United States.

After the money transfer, Mollen, his chief investigator and an assistant U.S. attorney who had been stationed in Belgrade, met in Washington, D.C. with the case’s principal Serbian prosecutor and her chief deputy.

“They traveled here to explain their process and the need for my assistance,” said Mollen, who has previously demanded Kovacevic face justice in the United States. “I was impressed with their qualifications and their presentation, and have been convinced that our best chance at this time to bring Mr. Kovacevic to justice in a reasonable period of time is to provide assistance to the Serbian prosecutors.”

The process will begin immediately, he said.

The U.S. Embassy in Belgrade said it will help Mollen and the U.S. Department of Justice “transfer the evidence to the Serbian authorities promptly, so that they can conduct a vigorous prosecution of Mr. Kovacevic.”

Kovacevic, a former Binghamton University basketball player, was arrested and accused last May for the beating of Steinhauer in a Downtown Binghamton bar. In June, a Serbian diplomat paid his $100,000 bail. And three days later, on June 10, Kovacevic fled to his native Serbia with the help of travel documents provided by the Serbian Consulate.

Kovacevic was arrested in Serbia in October when the Serbian authorities launched an investigation into the U.S. case against him. He was released in December because, according to a Belgrade court, he posed no flight risk. Serbia’s laws wouldn’t allow Kovacevic’s extradition, and the trial was set to proceed there.

Meanwhile, Steinhauer had fallen into a months-long coma. Now he’s out of the coma and has extensive therapy that “needs going forward,” the partner of the family lawyer said.

Mollen’s decision to assist Serbian prosecutors doesn’t affect felony assault charges pending in Broome County Court against Kovacevic. So if law enforcement officials in the United States lay their hands on him, he will be brought to Broome County to face trial.

Moreover, the agreement doesn’t affect the felony assault charges against Sanel Softic and Edin Dzubur, who were also accused in the beating. Nor does the criminal case affect the Steinhauer family’s civil lawsuit accusing two Downtown Binghamton bars for selling alcohol to the three men accused in the beating.