The Supreme Court on Friday published on its web site a June 2 ruling which changes Glavas's combined trial court verdict of ten years' imprisonment to a single sentence of of eight years in prison.

The Supreme Court ruled that Glavas committed one crime against civilians, upholding the findings of the Zagreb County Court that Glavas had effective command powers over the Protection Company and that he was aware that its members had unlawfully arrested and maltreated Serb civilians, but did nothing to prevent it.

The Supreme Court ruled that the Zagreb County Court introduced ample evidence showing that Glavas had actual command powers over that unit, regardless of the fact that Nikola Jaman was its formal commander and that Franjo Peic was the then commander of defence forces of Osijek.

Glavas's real political and military power is evidenced by the fact that Cedomir Vuckovic, who allegedly made an attempt on Glavas's life, and was actually an innocent victim of a war crime, set out to kill Glavas even though other commanders of the city's defence forces were in the same building at the time.

The fact that those other commanders were not aware of the crimes and of civilians being detained in the offices of the local National Defence Secretariat, as stated by witnesses Vladimir Seks and Karl Gorinsek, was not decisive for the court's conclusion about Glavas's criminal liability, which, the court said, was proven beyond doubt by other facts presented during the trial.

The Supreme Court rejected Glavas's objections to the credibility of the key witness Krunoslav Fehir, who was described in the appeal as a mentally ill person of questionable moral and other qualities, since Fehir's testimony and testimonies of other witnesses were backed by other evidence.

The Supreme Court also ruled that the testimony by Gordana Getos Magdic implicating Glavas in crimes committed against Serb civilians on the Drava River bank in the "Sellotape" case is a reliable and clear piece of evidence that Glavas had ordered Getos Magdic and another accused, Ivica Krnjak, to establish the Independent Uskok Company as a secret group charged with carrying out arrests and executions.

The Supreme Court partially accepted appeals by Glavas and other indictees in the case referring to the length of their prison sentences, but rejected appeals referring to the criminal procedure.

The Court also rejected the appeal by the State Prosecutor's Office.

The sentence of the second accused in the case, Ivica Krnjak, was reduced from eight to seven years and that of Gordana Getos Magdic from seven to five years. The sentences for Dino Kontic and Zdravko Dragic were reduced from five to three and a half years, and the sentence for Tihomir Valentic was reduced from five to four and a half years.

"These sentences fully condemn the crimes committed, their perpetrators will receive just sentences, and from the point of view of general prevention this judgment will be a clear message to all that there is no statute of limitations for war crimes and that they will not go unpunished," reads the court ruling.

After the Zagreb County Court passed the verdict in the case in May 2009, Glavas fled to Bosnia and Herzegovina whose citizenship he also holds. The other convicts have been in custody since then.

The time spent in detention will be credited towards their sentences, so Dino Kontic and Zdravko Dagic, who have spent more than three years in custody, will be released in a few months.

The other three convicts have also been in detention for more than three years.

Glavas was in custody from April 2007 to January 2008.

Bosnian Justice Minister Barisa Colak said on Friday that the Bosnian authorities would enforce the sentence against Glavas when the Croatian authorities made such a request.

Colak said that Glavas would be able to choose between serving his sentence in Bosnia or in Croatia.