Dinamo Zagreb Football Supremo Convicted of Fraud

Zdravko Mamic, the former chief of Dinamo Zagreb, his brother Zoran Mamic, Damir Vrbanovic, a former Dinamo director, and tax official Milan Pernar were convicted on Wednesday of siphoning about 116 million kunas (15.5 million euros) out of the football club and defrauding the state of about 12.milion kuna (1.8 euro) in unpaid taxes.

In the first-instance verdict, Zdravko Mamic was found guilty on both counts of the indictment and received six and a half years' imprisonment.

His brother Zoran got four years and 11 months, Pernar four years and two months, and Vrbanovic three years.

The money that Zdravko Mamic owes will be confiscated from accounts in several banks.

"The verdict surprised me, but the reasons for the verdict make me sad," he told a press conference on Wednesday.

None of the defendants appeared in court. Mamic is currently in Medjugorje in Bosnia and Herzegovina after crossing the border on Tuesday, the day before the verdict.

After the verdict, Mamic told N1 TV that he is planning to stay in Bosnia and will decide on what additional steps he can take to "prove his innocence."

The Croatian court issued an arrest warrant for Mamic, but as he holds Bosnian citizenship, Sarajevo did not agree to extradite him.

However, he denied that he has fled.

"[The visit to Bosnia] was not planned but was spontaneous, I felt that I had to go somewhere to find peace. I assessed that being here is better for me than to be in the courtroom in Osijek where I'll be frustrated," Mamic insisted on Tuesday.

On Monday, Mamic accused former state prosecutor Dinko Cvitan and corruption and organised crime body USKOK for putting pressure on the court to issue a guilty verdict.

The three-year court process was...