"It is absolutely clear that evidence against Purda is based on extorted statements," the lawyer said.
He recalled that the Serbian indictment against Purda for alleged war crimes in Vukovar in 1991 was compiled on the basis of a statement Purda gave when he was detained in a prison camp in Serbia.
The lawyer said that evidence obtained by force was absolutely unlawful and could not serve as grounds for the extradition.
In addition, the Croatian prosecutorial authorities concluded that there was no ground for launching criminal proceedings against Purda after they carried out a preliminary inquiry and interviewed tens of witnesses.
The Court of Bosnia and Herzegovina set an extradition hearing in the Purda case for 1 February. The lawyer said the information about the date of the hearing had been communicated to him.
Asked about his expectations from a meeting Croatian President Ivo Josipovic will hold next week in Zagreb with Bosnian Presidency members, Muselimovic said that he hoped that the officials would realise that the Purda case could have serious repercussions for the situation in the region and for the process of reconciliation.
The lawyer hopes that the two countries' officials will make steps that will lead to the release of his client.
He has already sent an open letter to Josipovic and Bosnia's tripartite presidency asking them to discuss the Purda case at their meeting in Zagreb on 31 January and 1 February.