Dragan Paravinja, who was convicted of rape in Serbia and is suspected of the recent murder of the teenage Croatian girl, Antonia Bilic, in the Dalmatia, was given two years and ten months for an attempted rape in eastern Bosnia in 2002 at the verdict-delivering hearing before the municipal court in Sokolac on Friday.
Paravinja's detention in custody was extended until a final verdict in this case is made, spokesman for the Sokolac court Dragana Macar told reporters.
Both the defence and the prosecution can appeal the first-instance ruling after they receive the judgement in writing in the coming days.
Both Serbia, where Paravinja was sentenced to four years and six month for rape but avoided serving the sentence fleeing to Croatia, and Croatia have requested the handover of Paravinja from Bosnia where he was arrested in late June after he fled from Croatia which suspects him of murder of the girl Bilic, who went missing in mid-June.
At an extradition hearing before the State Court of Bosnia and Herzegovina earlier this week, Paravinja, who holds both Croatian and Serbian citizenship, said he would accept a fast-track extradition to Croatia and voiced opposition to his transfer to Serbia.
The case of his extradition to Croatia is currently being considered by the Bosnian justice ministry.
The Bosnian justice ministry's secretary, Jusuf Halilagic, said that Paravinja's extradition to Croatia could be expected next week.
Halilagic was quoted by the Banja Luka-based "Nezavisne Novine" as saying on Friday that "if everything goes as planned, Paravinja could be extradited to Croatia next week."
