The Court of Bosnia and Herzegovina has ruled that Milenko Basic, owner of the Lager company from the southern town of Posusje and suspect in the Krs-Padjene wind park affair, in which the main suspect is former Croatian state secretary and HDZ official Josipa Rimac, should be extradited to Croatia.

The ruling is final.

A final decision on whether Basic will be extradited to Croatia is to be made by the Bosnia and Herzegovina justice minister, and that post is currently held by Josip Grubesa of the HDZ BiH party.

Along with Basic, Croatia has also asked Bosnia and Herzegovina to hand over Dragan Stipic, director of Basic’s Lager.

The Court of Bosnia and Herzegovina has made a ruling in Stipic’s case pending appeal but has refused to publish it, explaining that it does not have proof that Stipic has received the ruling in writing.

Croatian authorities have sought Basic’s and Stipic’s extradition because they are suspected of bribery and influence-peddling, committed in the period from early 2019 to the end of May 2020.

The Croatian anti-corruption agency USKOK believes 13 state officials and business people were involved in influence-peddling, abuse of office, and bribery in the wind park scandal.

Basic and Stipic are believed to have offered Rimac, at the time a state secretary at the Croatian Public Administration Ministry, €45,000 in bribes to help the CEMP company obtain the necessary permits for their Krs-Padjene wind park.