Zagreb- A Croatian politician has fled the country just 24 hours after being handed a 10-year sentence for the murder of Serbs during the 1992-95 war, Croatian media reported Saturday.

Branimir Glavas, who holds dual Croatian and Serb nationality, was convicted Friday, after a marathon 31-month trial, for the torture and murder of Serbs in Osjek in eastern Croatia. He was the first Croatian politician to go on trial for crimes against Serbs.

However, the 52-year old has now left the country, according to both TV and newspaper reports from Zagreb .

"Branimir Glavas has escaped. He is most likely in (neighbouring) Bosnia," the daily Jutarnji List reported.

Glavas was allegedly seen crossing the border with Bosnia in a black jeep, several other dailies reported.

Several Croatian TV stations also reported that Glavas was seen late Friday night in southwestern Bosnia. Croatian state news agency Hina quoted several Bosnian security officials saying Glavas was seen in the town of Tomislavgrad drinking coffee and walking freely around the town.

Glavas did not attend trial and Croatian media reported that after the verdict they had received a video of Glavas - taped before the sentencing - where he said he will not be arrested and accused the Croatian government and Prime Minister Ivo Sanader of a "judicial farce and political verdict".

"I will not say 'goodbye', only 'so long'," Glavas said in the video. "I've been prosecuted, charged without evidence and judged like in Kafka's 'The Trial'."

The Croatian government dismissed Glavas' accusations. "Those claims are failed attempts to portray the entire case from the judicial to political field," the government said in a statement.

Glavas was one of the founders of the late President Franjo Tudjman's Croatian Democratic Union (HDZ) and a long time head of Osjek district. He was expelled from HDZ by Sanader in 2005.

Legally, Glavas is not officially on the run as he is a member of parliament and still has immunity. Parliament's immunity commission has yet to convene and strip him of it and will do so in the next few days, local media reported.

The police will only start looking for him once that immunity has been removed.

Local media speculated that Glavas' lawyers had tipped him off in advance that he was about to be sentenced, and advised him to flee to Bosnia, since Bosnia and Croatia do not have a mutual extradition agreement. (dpa)