Ex-Croatian PM sentenced for bribe

ZAGREB: Former Croatian prime minister, Ivo Sanader, was sentenced to two-and-a-half years in prison on Monday for taking a bribe from Austria’s then Hypo Alpe Adria bank during the 1991-95 war.

Sanader - who has dismissed the proceedings as politically motivated - was not taken into custody and left the court without making a statement. His lawyer, Jadranka Slokovic, said he had already spent longer than that period in detention and would appeal.

The judge said Sanader received 3.6 billion kuna ($557.13 million) from Hypo when he was deputy foreign minister - an act that she said amounted to war profiteering. He then cleared the way for the bank - which has since collapsed - to loan Croatia money to buy buildings for embassies and consulates, the judge added in a statement broadcast live on state TV.

Sanader, who went on to become prime minister from 2003 to 2009, was originally convicted and jailed over the case in 2012 - then had the conviction overturned three years ago after the Constitutional Court said he had been denied a fair trial.