DEFENCE SUGGESTS DISCONTINUATION OF NADA SAKIC'S DETENTION

ZAGREB, Dec 7 (Hina) - War crimes suspect Nada Sakic's court- appointed attorney on Monday proposed that the Croatian Supreme Court discontinue detention for his client and release her at once. Zagreb Attorney Branko Seric forwarded a complaint to the Zagreb County Court, with regard to the Court's ruling that his client's detention period be extended for another month. Seric stated that, due to Esperanza Tambic de Bilanovic Sakic's advanced age and illness, there existed no founded suspicion that she might destroy, hide, alter, or forge evidence or traces important for the criminal proceedings against her, or that she might obstruct criminal proceedings by influencing witnesses. More than 50 years passed since Sakic's crime could have been committed, and there was no danger that Sakic might repeat the crime, said Seric. He warned it was impossible to sentence his client to long-term imprisonment, adding this implied detention was not obligatory given the Croatian Criminal Law's stipulation that a guilty party cannot be sentenced to long-term imprisonment if he or she was under 21 when the crime was committed. At the investigating judge's motion, the Zagreb County Court Council on December 1 extended Nada Sakic's detention during pre- trial proceedings for an additional one month period. Nada Sakic is suspected of war crimes committed as an official in a Croatian World War Two concentration camp. (hina) ha