Perković and Mustač sentenced to life imprisonment for the murder of Stjepan Đureković

Former members of the Yugoslav and Croatian secret services Josip Perković and Zdravko Mustač were found guilty on Wednesday by a court in Munich of aiding in the murder of Croatian emigrant Stjepan Đureković in Germany in 1983 and sentenced to life imprisonment, reports the BH News Agency Patria.

Judge Manfred Dauster ruled that the accused must also bear the costs of the proceedings. In its closing statement last week, the state prosecution reclassified the criminal offense of aiding in murder as participation in premeditated murder, which under German law carries a life sentence. The prosecution believes that it was proven during the trial that the accused Josip Perković directly acted in the organization of the murder of Stjepan Đureković.

In its closing statement, it also maintained the motive for the murder, which according to the prosecution was the elimination of Đureković as a witness to financial malversations in which Vanja, the son of then high-ranking Yugoslav politician Mika Špiljak, was involved in the state oil company Ina. Before leaving for Germany, Đureković held high managerial positions in Ina.