Zagreb County Court investigating judge Oliver Mittermayer on Wednesday rejected a motion by the USKOK anti-corruption office to extend custody for Milenko Basic and Dragan Stipic, who are suspects in the "wind park" scandal, ordering that they be released pending further proceedings.

Last Thursday, investigating judge Vinko Mioc accepted bail offered by Basic and Stipic, but the two remained in custody until Wednesday, pending a possible appeal by USKOK.

USKOK can also appeal against the latest ruling under which the two men were released.

Basic offered bail in the form of real estate and money valued at HRK 11 million while Stipic offered HRK 8.5 million.

The two had escaped to Bosnia and Herzegovina after the investigation in the case was launched and the Bosnian prosecutorial authorities ruled that they were to be remanded in investigative custody. In mid-February they appeared in Zagreb’s Remetinec jail and to this day it is not known how they had entered Croatia even though a warrant for their arrest had been issued.

During their interrogation by USKOK investigators the two denied being involved in the Wind Park scandal or having offered a former state-secretary at the Ministry of Public Administration and former Knin mayor, Josipa Rimac, a bribe of €45,000 in exchange for preferential treatment in obtaining a permit for the construction of the Krs-Padjene wind park.

Rimac was released from custody pending further proceedings in September last year. Gracac Mayor Natasa Turbic (HDZ), a former cabinet secretary at the Ministry of Agriculture, Ruzica Njavro, Sibenik businessman Ante Sladic and Knin city councillor Marinko Tokmacija, also implicated in the scandal, were all released before Rimac.