The Region - News from April 25, 1986

Accused Nazi war criminal Andrija Artukovic is not receiving a fair trial in Yugoslavia, his daughter told a Los Angeles International Airport press conference upon her return from the Communist state. “It’s a political trial, not a war crimes trial,” Nada Artukovic Brown said, adding that she will ask Amnesty International to send an “impartial observer” to the proceedings. Artukovic, 86, of Seal Beach was extradited to Yugoslavia to face charges that he was responsible for the deaths of thousands of Serbs, Jews and Gypsies during World War II. If convicted, he could face a firing squad. “Dad is already pre-tried” and will be found guilty, his daughter said. Her father has gained weight and is doing better physically since his arrival in Yugoslavia, she said, but he is mentally confused and unaware of his surroundings. “He’s asleep during most of the proceedings. He thinks he’s in Paradise. Everybody speaks his language, and the food is familiar,” she said.