Bosnia arrests 3 for aiding war criminal's escape

SARAJEVO, June 1 (Reuters) Bosnian police have arrested three people in the eastern town of Foca on suspicion of having helped a Bosnian Serb war criminal escape from jail, police said today.

Radovan Stankovic, serving a 20-year term for rape, enslavement and torture of civilians during Bosnia's 1992-95 war, faked a toothache last week and asked to see a dentist, then escaped guards escorting him and jumped into a waiting car.

Police found the getaway car near the Serbian border with Montenegro, and Bosnian police believe he could be in either country.

The three suspected accomplices will be handed over to the state prosecution today, the State Investigative and Protection Agency (SIPA) said in a statement.

SIPA said it had raided the apartments of several people in Foca, including those belonging to Stankovic and his brother, and confiscated items for analysis.

It said the investigation of others who might have helped Stankovic escape was under way, and it was working with police in neighbouring countries to find the fugitive.

Stankovic was found guilty of keeping nine Muslim women in enslavement in the Karaman House detention centre in Foca in 1992.

Two 12-year-old girls were held there and raped, tortured and beaten for months. One is still missing.

REUTERS AM BD2137