The Zagreb County Court on Thursday upheld yet another indictment against former prime minister and former president of the Croatian Democratic Union (HDZ), Ivo Sanader, who has been accused together with the former owner of the Dioki Group petrochemical company, Robert Jezic, for inciting the national electricity provider HEP's former CEO Ivan Mravak to lend Jezic's companies 15 million kuna and sell them electricity below the market value.
Mravak, who is currently serving a sentence in the Lipovica jail, appeared at the hearing, whereas Sanader, who is in prison in Remetinec, did not appear. Jezic excused himself due to alleged health problems.
The court upheld the indictment despite the fact that the two accused did not appear before the court.
Mravak has pleaded guilty and has accepted his share of the responsibility, his defence counsel, Branko Seric, told reporters after the hearing.
Seric believes that a pre-trial hearing for this case could be held within the next couple of months.
Virtually the same indictment had been filed last year but the prosecution withdrew it and after reviewing it, re-submitted it in May with new evidence.
Sanader is accused that, together with Jezic, in 2008 he incited Mravak to sell electricity to Jezic's companies at a lower price and to give him a 15 million kuna loan, which Mravak did without the knowledge of HEP's board. Although the loan was paid back, HEP lost HRK 3.8 million in the case. Jezic's companies 'saved' the HRK 3.8 million as a result of receiving cheaper electricity.
This is the fifth indictment upheld against the former prime minister. Recently the court received a sixth indictment accusing him of defrauding HEP for HRK 650 million by inciting Mravak to sell cheaper electricity to the Sibenik-based TLM light metals factory and the Mostar-based Alumunij aluminium company.
Sanader is currently serving a sentence of 10 years for the INA-MOL and Hypo Bank cases, pending appeal and is on trial for corruption in the Fimi Media and Planinska cases.
