LEGIJA GIVEN 30 DAYS TO PREPARE HIS DEFENCE IN PM DJINDJIC ASSASSINATION TRIAL

BELGRADE, May 10 (Hina) - The trial of the accused of the assassination of Serbian Prime Minister Zoran Djindjic will resume on 10 June, after a month-long break because of the request of the defence of principal defendant, Milorad Lukovic, to make it possible for him to be acquainted with the indictment and main hearings so far held in the trial, the Special Court for the Fight Against Organised Crime in Belgrade reported on Monday.#L# Milorad Lukovic aka Legija, who turned himself in to the police on May 2 after being at large for 14 months, was escorted to the building of the Special Court an hour and half before the scheduled continuation of the hearing this morning against 13 men accused of Djindjic's assassination. Of the 13 defendants, six are on the run. At the start of the hearing, the panel of judges took down personal data of Legija, and established that this was Milorad Ulemek, who had taken over his wife's surname Lukovic. It also established that he was the father to four children, and that he had no criminal records so far. The defendant introduced himself as "retired colonel of the Interior Ministry of Serbia". Lukovic's lawyers asked to be given 45 days for the preparation of the defence, but the panel of judges decided to allow the 30-day adjournment. The main hearing will resume on 10 June and the principle defendant Lukovic is to be questioned by 18 June. Lukovic's initial appearance in the Special Court was heavily covered by the media. Lukovic is also charged as the principal indictee with the assassination of Ivan Stambolic, a former Serbian Prime Minister and opponent of the regime of Slobodan Milosevic, and with an attempt on the life of the current Foreign Minister of Serbia-Montenegro, Vuk Draskovic while Draskovic was an opposition leader during the Milosevic rule in 2000. (Hina) ms